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Green food for St. Patrick's Day: Green tomatoes

Posted Mar 10th 2008 2:00PM by Shayna Glick
Filed under: Vegetables

Green tomatoes on the vine with dew on them.

Well, really, they are just unripe tomatoes, but we love 'em! They're great for frying and making salsa. Even though they are in the nightshade family and their leaves are poisonous, the actual fruit is edible. Not only is it edible, it's downright tasty! Tomatoes also have a powerful antioxidant called lycopene, which has similar effects to vitamin E.

And, yes, it is a fruit. At least it is in a very strict botanical sense. The problem is that it's generally considered savory rather than sweet like most other fruits. That led to a Supreme Court battle in 1893 over whether tomatoes should be considered a fruit, which weren't subject to a duty, or a vegetable, which were. I guess we know which side won.

So even though though they are savory, green tomatoes would be a sweet addition to any St Patrick's Day meal!

Color my beverages, safely

Posted Dec 31st 2006 6:04PM by Jonathan M. Forester
Filed under: Juice, Science, Business, Trends, Soda, Health & Medical

I have lately been reading in-depth articles on research and development in food and beverage trade publication on beverage colors. Drinks come in myriad of shades of the rainbow, and more. From neon colors to pastels, earth tones and cola and root beer browns.

For many years artificial colors were in. They were easy to make and stable over long periods of time. Then there were all the scares with artificial dyes over the years, like cancer and allergies. Combined with today's health consciousness, this has led to the development of new, natural colors. You would think this was easy but it has been a struggle. Natural colors are difficult to make stable, so they don't change shades or fade with time. Now it looks like the color stability problem is a thing of the past.

Continue reading Color my beverages, safely

Brighten up with rainbow carrots

Posted Oct 5th 2006 2:07PM by Nicole Weston
Filed under: Vegetarian, Vegetables, Did you know?

Red, yellow, green and purple - are rainbow carrots the way of the future? Perhaps, but they could more accurately be called the carrots of the past because they have a long history. Purple and yellow carrots were grown as many as 1,000 years ago in Asia and Western Europe, although selective breeding programs to produce such colors for commercial purposes are fairly recent. Carrots are now regularly bred in purple, red, yellow and white, in addition to orange, and scientists say that there is added nutritional benefit to choosing a colorful vegetable over a more conventional one.

Red carrots have extra lycopene, which is also found in tomatoes and is believed to lower blood pressure and help to reduce the risk of some cancers. Yellow carrots promote eye health with beta-carotene-like pigments, and purple carrots have powerful antioxidants.

Even with health benefits to recommend them, the carrots are not an easy sell. This is in part because neither consumers nor producers are really sure what to look for as a sign of a good purple carrot, whereas most people look for a good color and relatively smooth skin for an orange one. The bigger issue is that consumers don't know what they're going to taste like and are reluctant to branch out. But the carrots taste pretty much the same, regardless of their color, and some taste even sweeter than a standard carrot.

Some Trader Joe's locations started carrying the rainbow carrots this week, and they're worth a try if you see them there or at your local grocery store.

Tomato extract may lower blood pressure

Posted Jan 12th 2006 8:29PM by Nick Vagnoni
Filed under: Science, Fruit, Middle East

A new study from the University of Negev in Israel suggests that tomato extract may help lower blood pressure. An extract called Lyc-O-Mato, made by Israel-based LycoRed, was used in a study tracking the blood pressure of 31 volunteers, ages 30 to 70. Researchers observed drops in blood pressure from the ranges that categorize grade-1 hypertension to less severe ranges known as high to moderate. The study lasted only 16 weeks and researchers say that longer investigations are necessary to determine any long-term benefits. Researchers suggested that the positive effects of the tomato extract are likely due to high concentrations of the antioxidant lycopene as well as beta-carotene and vitamin E.

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Green food for St. Patrick's Day: Green tomatoes

Color my beverages, safely

Brighten up with rainbow carrots

Tomato extract may lower blood pressure

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