Cathy's Kitchen
by Cathy Katavich
Tomatoes
At least that’s my opinion!
Tomatoes are one of the true
joys of summer. As a cook, when
you get that fi rst really ripe
tomato, perhaps straight from
your garden, it’s memorable!
Some would argue that tomatoes
are a fruit, not a vegetable, and
they would be correct. Botanically
speaking, a tomato is a fruit, but
agriculturally and for culinary
purposes, a tomato is a vegetable.
Tomatoes originated around the
area of modern-day Peru and
were fi rst used as a food by the
Aztecs in Southern Mexico. The
Spanish introduced the tomato to
Europe in the early 16th century,
and the Spanish and Italians were
the fi rst Europeans to adopt it as
a food. Tomatoes were introduced
to North America from Europe.
Thomas Jefferson is known to
have raised them at Monticello
in 1781 but they did not become
popular in the United States until
the early 20th century.
Types of Tomatoes
There are over 7500 varieties of tomatoes, and new hybrids and heirlooms are
introduced every year. Most tomatoes are red, but other colors include yellow,
green, orange, purple, white, brown and black. The most common types include:
Slicing Tomatoes
This is the classic tomato, round