The harvest is in and it’s time for tomatoes. They come in so many sizes—large, medium, or small—and are full of nutrients and are heart healthy to keep you ticking. This wholesome food is incredibly versatile and contains hundreds of antioxidants. So let’s strategize 30 ways to put tomatoes into your next meal! Find recipes that utilize tomatoes at https://www.nustarthealth.com/resources/recipes/.
Fresh
1. Eat off the vine for some quick-meal sweetness.
2. Dice and add tomatoes to plain or bean pasta (substitute spaghetti squash for a low-calorie, healthier substitute for pasta) and toss with 1/2T olive oil, some basil leaves, and grated Parmesan cheese. Click Here for Recipe.
3. Chop and sprinkle tomatoes on top of cottage cheese.
Soups
4. Whip of a batch gazpacho, the classic cold soup using tomatoes, cucumbers and flavored with sherry vinegar.
5. Make homemade tomato soup with roasted bell peppers to remind you of familiar flavors from your childhood. Click Here for Recipe.
Salads
6. Create a refreshing tomato and bean salad. Click Here for Recipe.
7. Pack a loved one’s lunchbox with a caprese salad: tomatoes, mozzarella, cucumbers and basil.
8. Combine finely minced Mexican mixture to serve on a bed of spinach. Click Here for Recipe.
9. Turn tomatoes into a bruschetta topping or dressing.
Sauces
10. Make your own raw tomato sauce like the one on nustarthealth.com. Click Here for Recipe.
11. Top anything with NuStart’s fiesta sauce…especially on flaky white fish. Click Here for Recipe.
12. Reduce tomatoes in a pan for a batch of paste or even pizza sauce.
13. Place dried tomatoes in a food processor with a couple of garlic cloves. Puree with enough olive oil to make a pesto. Add pecorino Romano cheese for a sundried tomato pesto.
14. There’s nothing better on a tortilla chip than pico de gallo or homemade salsa.
Sandwiches
15. Slide a couple of juicy slices of tomato into your next grilled cheese sandwich.
16. Change up the Classic BLT by adding in spinach & avocado!
Preserved
17. Make your next Indian meal sing with a batch of tomato chutney.
18. Make slow roasted tomatoes & serve with sautéed garlic & kale.
Entrees and Sides
19. Make an eggplant lasagna parmesan. Click Here for Recipe.
20. Grill tomatoes with lots of other veggies like this Mediterranean Dish. Click Here for Recipe.
21. Sprinkle flaxseed over the top of tomatoes & bake.
22. Get creative with fillings for stuffed tomatoes. Try everything from rice to bulgur to ground beef, to fruit and cheese. Click Here for Recipe.
23. Create a pot of chili for your next camping trip or football game. Click Here for Recipe.
24. Have breakfast for dinner with a tomato & veggie omelet or quiche.
25. Mix up Ratatouille, which is more than just a kids’ movie it’s a savory vegetable stew that is tasty hot or cold.
26. Don’t forget the sun-dried tomatoes in a quinoa risotto.
Beverages
27. Make your own tomato juice to reduce all the added sodium and preservatives that are found in packaged tomato juice.
28. Cool off with a frozen tomato slushy on a hot summer day.
Other
29. Dry out oily skin by making a tomato skin care mask.
30. Save the tomato seeds to plan for next year’s garden to do this all over again.
Bon appetite!