This quick marinara sauce is perfect for pasta sauce, pizza sauce, or a base for meatballs! The combination of dried herbs and canned tomatoes (with no salt added) gives you freedom to enjoy a quick, easy recipe without the added sodium found in canned or jarred pasta sauces. [Read more…] about Herb Infused Marinara Sauce
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Tomato 101
All tomatoes are fruits of the plant, although they’re typically referred to and used as vegetables when cooking. Here’s a guide to the most popular varieties and their best culinary uses!
With so many different types, it can be difficult to choose the best one for your cooking needs.
For reference, here are the best types of tomatoes for various purposes:
- Sauces: Roma, heirloom, tomatoes on the vine
- Canning: Roma, heirloom, tomatoes on the vine, green tomatoes
- Salads: grape, cherry
- Skewers: cherry
- Sandwiches: beefsteak, tomatoes on the vine
- Fried: green tomatoes
- Snacks: grape, cherry, heirloom
Although some varieties are better suited for specific purposes, they’re all versatile. For instance, although beefsteak tomatoes are not ideal for salads, they can still easily be used in one with tasty results.
Although there are thousands of varieties of tomato, they can be divided into seven broad categories.
Each type has its own best uses, but they’re all low in calories and rich in nutrients and antioxidants like vitamin C, beta carotene, and lycopene.
Try some of our recipes featuring this delicious summer fruit!
- Apricot & Tomato Salad
- Catfish Tacos with Pico de Gallo and Avocado Crema
- Chicken Caprese Spaghetti Squash
- Creamy Onion Dip
- Grape Tomato and Cilantro Salad
- Kale Quiche
- Margherita Pizza
- Marinated Tomatoes
- Roasted Edamame and Corn Salad
- Sausage and Veggie Skewers
- Spicy Pea and Avocado Toast
- Taco Boats
- Tex Mex Tabbouleh
- Tomato 101
- Tomato Crisps
- Tortellini Kabobs
- Turkey Chili
Tomatoes are an excellent food to include in your diet and using this guide can help you choose the right type for your cooking needs.
Source:
Butternut Squash Dip
Who knew squash could be creamy and cheesy? Just add a little spinach and sun-dried tomatoes for your new favorite fall recipe. Add these ingredients to your list for an easy and healthy appetizer that will tempt all your guests.
- 2 cups butternut squash cubed, steamed
- 4 sundried tomato halves in olive oil drained
- 2 cups spinach leaves frozen, thawed, and drained
- 1 cup ricotta cheese low-fat
- 1 Tablespoon Ranch Dip Mix
- 3 Tablespoons water
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese nonfat, shredded
- Wash your hands and clean your preparation area. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
- Add cooled steamed squash, sundried tomatoes, drained spinach leaves, ricotta cheese, ranch dip mix, and water into a blender. Combine until smooth.
- Pour the mixture into an oven-safe baking dish. Stir in ½ cup of mozzarella cheese into the dip.
- Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella cheese on top of the dip.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes until heated, and the cheese is browning on top.
Safely Storing Food
For most, grocery shopping is the easy part. However, storing and putting your food away, that can be tricky! Here’s an excellent resource provided by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
- FREEZER (0°F or below):
- Wrap and label meat, fish and poultry that you plan to freeze.
- FRIDGE (34°F – 40°F):
- Dairy and eggs should be stored in the coldest part of the fridge, usually near the back and away from the door.
- Put meat in the meat drawer or on the lowest shelf of the refrigerator.
- Use the crisper or produce drawers for veggies!
- Olive oil and nut oils go rancid quickly when exposed to light and heat, which puts the kibosh on their healthful qualities. Refrigeration may cause these oils to become cloudy, but they’ll clear up when they return to room temperature.
- Cheese may be best served at room temperature — but, like all animal-derived food, still needs to be stored in the fridge. Take it out a short time before serving for the best flavor. Perishable foods, including cheese, should be thrown out if they are kept out of the refrigerator for two or more hours. In the warmer months, that amount of time will be less.
- Butter should be kept cold. Your grandma may have kept her butter in a crock on the counter to keep it nice and spreadable. However, keeping butter refrigerated avoids risky bacterial contamination. If you want soft butter, remove it for a little while before serving to let it soften.
- PANTRY or COUNTERTOP (50°F – 70°F):
- Canned goods last 2+ years but can be damaged by temperatures above 100°F.
- Mayo and similar condiments can be stored in the pantry; move them to the fridge when it’s been opened.
- Honey is very shelf-stable and will last a long time. Also, if you chill honey it becomes hard to pour, so keep it in your pantry.
- Tomatoes fare better when kept out of the fridge, where they can become mealy. It’s true that they spoil faster when stored on the counter. If you won’t be eating them within 1 to 2 days, store ripened tomatoes in the refrigerator for 2 or 3 days. However, keep in mind that once you cut into a tomato (or any fruit or vegetable), it needs to be refrigerated to slow the growth of harmful bacteria.
- Potatoes and Onions like the same conditions, but they should not be stored together. Potato starch turns to sugar when refrigerated. Potatoes and onions should be stored in a cool, dry place such as the bottom of your pantry. Remove any potatoes and onions that go bad in the pantry from the rest.
- Bread can stale quickly in the fridge due to the dry circulating air. If you’re afraid your bread will become moldy because your kitchen is hot or humid, or because you won’t be eating it quickly, freeze it. You can remove only what you need and thaw it on the counter or in the toaster on the “defrost” setting.
- Peanut butter becomes difficult to spread when it’s cold, so store it in your pantry if you will use it within 2 to 3 months. Store in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 months. However, if you buy natural peanut butter, check the label; some brands recommend refrigeration to keep the natural oils from separating.
- Fruits with pits, like peaches and plums, should be placed in a closed paper bag until ripe — then refrigerated. Keep tomatoes in the pantry only if they’ll be eaten within 1-2 days — otherwise, they go in the fridge.
Learn more from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Visit eatright.org for more information on healthful eating or to find a registered dietitian nutritionist.
Click here for a handy printable chart on Storing Fruits and Veggies from Purdue Extension.
All About Pasta
Selecting the right shape of pasta in your dish has the ability to take your meal to a level beyond your imagination. The following information will help you to make the right decision in order to create a delicious meal! Choosing the right shape for your dish can be challenging but we want to make it easier for you! See the guide below:
Soups:
- Farfalline, Pastina, Fideo, Fusilli, Tripolini, Ruote, Orzo
Salads:
- Linguine, Fusilli, Tubini, Rotini, Ziti, Tripolini, Rocchetti, Penne, Vermicelli
Casseroles:
- Figli, Lasagna, Orzo, Fusilli, Rocchetti, Rotini, Spaghetti, Radiatori
Stir-Fry:
- Ziti, Linguine, Penne, Mostaccioli, Rotini, Spaghetti, Vermicelli, Tubini, Farfalline
Sauces:
- Fettuccine, Tortellini, Linguine, Fusilli, Penne, Orzo, Gemelli, Vermicelli, Rigatoni
Baked Dishes
- Tubini, Ziti, Farfalline, Manicotti
Stop the presses because pasta doesn’t last lifetime! Contrary to what you think, pasta does have a shelf life and it matters! The following information will definitely help you get your money’s worth.
Shelf life matters! Here are the shelf lives for dry noodles:
Egg Pasta Noodles & Vegetable:
- 1-2 years depending on the best by date
Non-Egg:
- 3 years depending on best by date
Are you making the most out of all the pasta you recently cooked? Follow these tips to ensure your food is safe to eat for you and the entire family!
Leftover safety 101!
- Keep in refrigerator for only 3-4 days
- Planning your meals will help you utilize your leftovers better.
- Keep food as peak quality by immediately portioning into smaller containers to avoid bacteria growth.
- Always reheat food to 165 Degrees F.
- When in doubt, toss it out!
Which pasta should you pair which sauce?? Heres our guide from Escoffier.
Long and round: (spaghetti, linguini, vermicelli, and angel hair)
Olive-oil-based sauces work best with these long noodles. They coat the thin surface and cling to it without having too much noodle to drown out the sauce.
Long and flat: (fettucine, tagliatelle, pappardelle, linguine)
Creamy sauces like ragu and bolognaise. They require bigger surfaces in order to stick to the noodles and not just fall to the bottom of the serving dish. Look for ones that are wide and flat, like pappardelle?, for rich, hearty sauces. Alfredo sauce is great on fettucine because it doesn’t require as much noodle to stick to. If you are working with a meaty or heavy sauce, also chose a wider, flat noodle like tagliatelle to hold up the thicker sauce.
Short pasta: (ziti, campanelle, penne, rigatoni)
Short pastas are super versatile. They have plenty of surface to hold creamy sauces but they also work well with chunky ones because meat and veggies get stuck inside them or on them. Pastas with the word “rigate” in them have ridges. This makes them excellent candidates for light sauces like pesto or creamy alfredo.
Large, wide noodles: (lasagna, manicotti, giant shells)
Lasagna noodles are perfect for baked pasta dishes. They layer well with sauce, meat and cheese and give the dish structure. Shells and manicotti can be stuffed with all your favorite ingredients and baked to perfection.
Spiral noodles: (rotini, fusilli, cavitappi)
Looking for a pasta that will hold thin sauces like alfredo but can also handle meaty, heavy varieties? Look for a spiraled noodle like rotini, cavitappi or fusilli. The texture of these types of pasta allows them to gather a lot of sauce and not let it slip off. Plus, they can be easier to eat (no slurping) and are a major favorite with kids. You can also use bigger ingredients with these noodles, like cheese chunks, chickpeas and diced tomatoes. These larger items would fall away from a spaghetti noodle but work well with shorter, more textured options.
Short shapes: (bowtie, wagon wheels, cavatelli)
Noodle shapes that are short and thick have a more dense bite. They work well in pasta salads and with larger ingredients. They have ridges, curls and ruffles that make them sturdier and work well with hearty, meaty sauces.
Here are some of our favorite pasta recipes to use all your new knowledge!
- Baked Ziti
- Beef Italian Pasta
- Beef Stuffed Pasta
- Butternut Squash Mac n Cheese
- California Chicken Pasta
- Cheesy Chicken Pasta
- Chicken Bow Tie Sausage Pasta
- Chili Mac
- Creamy Pumpkin Pasta
- Easy Spinach and Chicken Pasta
- Eggplant Delight
- Hearty Two Bean Minestrone Soup
- Herb Infused Marinara Sauce
- Italian Shrimp Fettucini
- Making the Perfect Pasta
- Mexicali Turkey Skillet Casserole
- Minestrone Pasta
- Orzo Garlic Chicken
- Pasta Salad with Peas and Ham
- Pasta with Spinach Sauce
- Ravioli and Tomatoes
- Salmon Bowtie Pasta
- Skillet Gnocchi
- Skillet Lasagna
- Slow Cooker Pork Cacciatore
- Soba Noodle and Snap Pea Salad
- Southern Roasted Vegetable Pasta
- Spicy Garlic Shrimp Pasta
- Spinach Pasta Toss
- Summer Veggies with Bow-Tie Pasta
- Tortellini Kabobs