Paste Tomatoes

Paste tomatoes make the best, sauce, paste and salsa. Their intense flavor, firm texture and few seeds makes them perfect to eat right off the vine.
Here are 11 paste tomato varieties to consider growing in your garden this summer.

"Big Mama" produces an 8 to 10 oz tomato. It's very meaty and few seeds.
"Jersey Giant" is thick fleshed, large, long, tapered pepperlike tomatoes. They have a sweet flavor gardeners rave about.
"Roman Candle" has a pale yellow skin. It's smooth, creamy and has a sweet flavor.
"San Marzano Redorta"  is named after a mountain in Italy. This is a large tomato that produces heavy yields.
"Carol Chyco's Big Paste"
This tomato is a very large heirloom. Great for slicing and a delicious choice for sauces and canning.
"Rocky" is another huge heirloom tomato. It has the full tomato flavor gardener's love.
"Amish Paste" is juicy and it's flavor outstanding.
"Opalka" is a heirloom from Poland. It's very meaty and sweet.
"Super Italian Paste" is a big tomato. It's meaty and sweet with a large irregular shape.
"Polish Linguisa" is another meaty and sweet tomato. It's great for dicing and using in salads.
"Heidi" is a heiloom of Africa. It produces flavorful tomatoes all season long. It's great for sauces and eating fresh.
Sauce in 6 minutes:
This is one of the easiest and freshest sauce recipes.
Start with minced garlic added to 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil. Saute for a minute.
Carefully pour in a 1/2 cup of cold stock. Add chopped paste tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add 2 handfuls of chopped basil and serve with pasta.

Apples stuffed with Peanut Butter

Ingredients;
2 apples, washed, cut in half and cored
2 tbsp natural peanut butter, for each apple
1tsp old fashioned oats
Take apple halves and stuff with peanut butter.
Sprinkle with a tsp of oats and serve this dish as a healthy, fresh dessert.

Know Your Lemons

Sorrento Lemon
From: Italy
In the kitchen: This geographically protected organic beauty makes a fragrant Marmalade.

Eureka Lemon
From: California by way of Italy
In the kitchen: It's high acidity makes it great for salads.


Meyer Lemon
From: California by way of China.
In the kitchen: Sweet. It's used in many cocktails.


Variegated Eureka Lemon
From: California.
In the kitchen: Rosy and refreshingly tart.
Great for lemonade.

Black Bean Dip

Ingredients;
2 cups cooked black beans, rinsed well
1 large clove minced garlic
1 medium sized tomato, chopped
2 Tbsp of fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil or more
3/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp sea salt
Black pepper and cayenne to taste
Place everything in blender and blend until creamy. More olive oil might be needed if the bean dip is to dry, so adding olive oil a little at a time while blending in best.
Serve at room temperature, or serve chilled if desired.
This dip tastes great with whole grain tortillas, as a veggie dip, or as a sandwich spread.

Happy Easter Weekend

Asparagus with Lemon and Whole Grain Pasta

Ingredients;
1 package of whole grain spaghetti
Extra virgin olive oil
1bunch of asparagus, cleaned and cut
1large clove of minced garlic
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
The juice of 1lemon

Cook pasta following the directions on the package.
Clean and cut asparagus.
Heat three tbsp of olive oil over medium heat. Add asparagus and cook until tender, stirring occasionally.
Once finished, add garlic and cook a minute longer.
Add cooked pasta, with 1/2 cup of the reserved pasta water and toss together. 
Season with salt and pepper.
Add lemon juice and serve.