Izzy Muses

Have you noticed that your taste for foods is changing as you approach menopause? Mine certainly has. I am a believer in listening to your body because I do think given half a chance it will point you in the direction of the things that are good for you. One of those things that I’ve been enjoying for the past 18 months is tomatoes. Everyone knows tomatoes are healthy – a key component of the mediterranean diet, good for the heart, rich in antioxidants but perhaps to be avoided if you suffer from arthritis. What I’ve been reading recently suggests that cooked tomatoes may be better than raw because they are more easily absorbed by the body. I don’t know if that’s true but I’d like to believe it because cooking with tomatoes is one of the great joys of life.

Here are two of my favourite quick and easy recipes for you to try:

Breakfast Tomatoes
Any tomato will do. For taste, I prefer homegrown. For convenience, choose a mid-sized beef tomato. Slice the tomato into roughly 1/4 inch or 10cm slices. Warm some olive oil in your pan, then add the tomatoes over a medium high heat. Cover with a splash guard as they will spit a little while frying. Meanwhile prepare some toast. Wait for the tomatoes to start to soften, turn, then allow to cook through. Season with black pepper. Tip out onto a plate and remove the skins which is quick and easy to do once cooked. You can scoop them out with a fork and put them on a piece of kitchen paper for easy disposal. I like to use the olive oil from the pan instead of butter so I tip the tomatoes straight on to the toast and then  peel them. Just before serving I sprinkle with some black or white pepper for a little extra zing.

Homemade Tomato Sauce for Pasta
This sauce is very easy and so worthwhile because the flavour is better than shop bought sauces and  you can make sure that all the ingredients are healthy. I never add salt because I don’t think you miss it if you have the right ingredients and it’s much better for the heart to leave it out.

For this sauce, I like to use cherry or plum tomatoes because you get a better colour but any tomatoes will do. The quantity will depend on how many people you are cooking for – allow four or five tomatoes per person if you’re using cherry tomatoes.

Warm some olive oil in large flat bottomed pan. Cut the tomatoes in half (or quarter if they are large), pop into the oil, and allow to fry gently until soft. It is good to remove the pan from the heat  and fish out the skins at this point – they will have loosened during the frying and will be easy to remove. I use a fork to fish them out and collect them on paper napkin so they are easy to dispose of. Return the pan to the heat and add a chopped clove of garlic and/or a chopped onion at this point depending on your taste. Allow it to cook gently in the oil for about two minutes. Then add a teaspoon of sugar which will help bring out the flavour of the tomatoes. Next add a tube of tomato puree (about 200g) – this will really intensify the flavour of your sauce – and as much water as is required to get the sauce to the desired consistency. You may if you wish add herbs to this sauce for more flavour. Oregano is good. I like to add freshly chopped chives too when I have them in the garden. Black pepper will give the final kick. And that’s it – cheaper than most shop bought sauces, better flavour, and pretty much as quick and easy to prepare.

If you don’t have time to cook, it’s hard to beat sliced raw tomato liberally sprinkled with pepper perhaps with a drizzle of olive oil and served on fresh bread!

Enjoy.