Sun Dried Tomatoes

These sun dried tomatoes imported from Turkey are moist and soft, ready to be stirred into pasta, added into sandwiches, or made into a spread. Our sun dried tomatoes are picked and dried at the peak of ripeness so they have a rich, concentrated tomato flavor.

For optimal freshness, store opened and unopened packages in your refrigerator.

How to Use Sun Dried Tomatoes

1. Pasta and Salads: Chop up sun dried tomatoes into small pieces and toss them into penne with chicken for a flavorful and simple meal. You can also add them into any salad (including egg and tuna salad) for heartiness and flavor.

2. Soups and Sauces: Substitute a cup of sun dried tomatoes for tomato paste in a vegetable soup for a pronounced tomato flavor. Or add some to your store bought marinara sauce for a homemade taste without all of the work! For a delicious twist on pesto, stir in finely chopped sun dried tomatoes.

3. Spreads and Dips: Blend sun dried tomatoes in a food processor and stir them into mayonnaise or butter to make a sun dried tomato spread. Combine finely minced sun dried tomatoes with mined garlic for a great crostini spread. Or even wrap brie, sun dried tomatoes, and basil in phyllo dough and bake it for a satisfying cheesy dip.

4. Bread and Meats: Mix these tomatoes into bread, focaccia, or cornbread to add another dimension of flavor. And add them to burgers for a summertime twist.

Health Tips

1. Eating tomatoes, ketchup, tomato sauce and tomato paste-topped pizza more than two times a week can reduce the risk of prostate cancer by 21 to 43 percent according to Dr. Edward Giovannucci of the Harvard University School of Public Health.

2. Men who eat two or more servings of tomato products average a 35 percent reduction in prostate cancer risk.

3. The best food sources of lycopene according to the Tomato Research Council in New York City: (Amount of lycopene in one ounce) Tomato Sauce, Spaghetti Sauce, Ketchup (5 mg); Tomato Soup, Canned Tomatoes, Tomato Juice, Vegetable Juice (3 mg); Minestrone Soup, Vegetable Soup, Pink Grapefruit (1 mg).

4. Tomatoes are high in Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Calcium and Potassium.

5. Lycopene occurs in only a few foods besides tomatoes and since you absorb more lycopene when you eat a little fat with your tomato some olive oil or cheese isn’t such a bad thing after all.

6. A good source of vitamin C, especially fresh tomatoes. Latest news: yes, tomatoes offer vitamin C, and a lot else besides. It turns out that they are rich in important carotenoids, including lycopene—a relative of the more celebrated beta carotene. Lycopene appears to help prevent prostate cancer.

7. Should Women Eat Lycopene Products Too? Doctors and scientists now encourage men to eat a lot of tomato products because they are rich in lycopene, which seems to lower the risk of prostate cancer. But can lycopene help prevent cancer in women, too? A few studies have found that in postmenopausal women, high blood levels of lycopene are associated with a lower risk of breast cancer. But at this point nobody can say that eating tomatoes will reduce your risk. More than one study has found that women who consume the most lycopene are less likely to have precancerous cervical cells. Despite the unknowns, women should treat themselves to lycopene-rich foods?particularly tomato products.

8. If you suffer from skin disease, a tomato a day may keep the doctor away, as tomatine, tomato’s principle alkaloid, concentrated in its branchy leaves and green fruit, heals certain fungous diseases of the skin.