Tomatoes in the News

• Gene discovery could lead to better tomatoesSan Francisco ChronicleThe discovery, made by an international research team headed by UC Davis, could have broad benefits to California's tomato industry - a $1.3 billion business. By looking at a collection of mutant and wild tomatoes at UC Davis collected in the 1950s by ...
• Tomatoes Ripe With Powerful Health BenefitsFood Product DesignResearchers from the National Center for Food Safety & Technology, Illinois Institute of Technology and ConAgra Foods Inc. examined current research to discover the role tomato products play in health and disease risk reduction. ...Tomatoes Pack A Nutritious Punch, Study FindsBETTER Health Researchall 3 news articles »
• Small Cancer Benefit Seen with Multivitamin UseMedPage TodayCo-authors disclosed relationships with the Tomato Products Wellness Council, Cambridge Theranostics, DSM Nutritional Products, BASF, Cognis, Pronova BioPharma, Pharmavite, Aurora Foundation, Bristol-Myers Squibb, AstraZeneca, Novartis, Merck, ...and more »
• Eat Your Heart Out With Healthy Red FoodsTyler Morning TelegraphProcessed tomatoes — sauce and paste — are more effective than raw tomatoes at reducing cancer risk. In the raw tomato, the lycopene is bound into the cell walls and fiber. Processing breaks down these cell walls and frees the lycopene to be absorbed ...and more »
• Counsel & Heal Tomatoes May Lower Risk of Stroke and Fight Prostate CancerCounsel & Heal(Photo : Flickr/PurpleFoodie) Experts say in the journal Neurology that cooked and/or processed tomatoes with cooking oil have the highest and most active levels of lycopene. Which makes sun-dried tomatoes the tastiest way to combat a stroke. According ...and more »
• Dan Morain: Will jobs be lost with cap and trade?Sacramento BeeRANDY PENCH / rpench@sacbee.com. Energy is needed to produce the steam that sanitizes gallon containers soon to be filled with processed tomatoes. Cap and trade costs at the plant remain to be determined. 7FO19FLUME.JPG ...

White Bean And Tomato Soup

With its protein-rich beans and tangy, vitamin-rich tomatoes, this hearty soup makes a very satisfying lunch - fall, winter, or spring.

• 4 cups defatted chicken broth
• 3 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried)
• 1 small sprig fresh rosemary
• 2 large sprigs fresh Italian parsley
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 yellow onions, diced 1/4-inch
• 1 small carrot, diced 1/4-inch
• 1 small rib celery, diced 1/4-inch
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 2 (15.5 ounce) cans Great Northern or cannellini white beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes

• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• 6 to 8 large fresh basil leaves, torn
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
• Shavings of Parmigiano-Reggiano

Measure broth into saucepan and bring to simmer. Wrap herbs and bay leaf in cheesecloth and tie to make sachet. Add to broth and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand.

Heat oil in 4-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add onions, carrot, and celery; cook until just beginning to brown about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook another minute. Remove and discard sachet and add broth to saucepan along with beans and tomatoes; stir to combine. Return to simmer and cook on low for 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle 1/3 of soup into blender container and process until smooth. Return all to saucepan and simmer 10 minutes longer. Soup may be prepared to this point and stored, covered, in refrigerator for up to 4 days.

To serve, bring soup to simmer and stir in basil, parsley, and vinegar. Ladle into warmed bowls and garnish with cheese shavings. Serve with slices of warm, crusty Italian bread.

Serves 8