I want my tomatoes to come from New Jersey...

I consider myself to be a vegetarian and a locivore.

I subscribe to Michael Pollan's philosophy of food: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

and I have a bit of a food philosophy of my own:

1. Eat local. If you can afford it, eat local organic. If you can't get local, eat organic - at least the fruits and vegetables most likely to be contaminated with pesticides (you can find lists all over the web).
2. Cook to the food, not the recipe. Buy the best produce in season and build your meal around it.
3. Teach your children how food grows, where it grows, and what ripens in each season where you live.

Here are some books on food and eating that I have read and would recommend - in no particular order.

1. Frances Moore Lappe's "Diet for a Small Planet"
2. "Laurel's Kitchen" by Laurel Robertson
3. Michael Pollan's "The Omnivore's Dilemma"
4. "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A year of Food Life" by Barbara Kingsolver
5. "Tomatoland" by Barry Estabrook.
6. "Food Rules: An Eater's Manual" by MIchael Pollan
7. "In Defense of Food" by Michael Pollan
8. "Fair Food: Growing a Healthy, Sustainable Food System for All" by Orin B. Hesterman
9. "The Locavore's Handbook: The Busy Person's Guide to Eating Local on a Budget " by Leda Meredith

Click here to go back to the Stories page.
Click on the PICTURE below to link to my Vegetarian Cooking Blog (www.365vegetariandays.blogspot.com)


 

My Tomato:  Music & Lyrics by Karen J. Kamenestky (2011) 

My tomato doesn’t have a first name, so I decided to call him Tom. 
I saw him sitting in the grocery store, I said “Tom, Where are you from?” 
He said, “Its January, did you think I grew outside in New Jersey?” 
“I was doing just fine in California, ‘till they ripped me from the vine too early.” 
I said: “Tom, I think we have a problem. ‘cause…” 

I want my tomatoes to come from New Jersey. 
I want them to ripen on the vine. 
I want to get them at the farm stand, the day they bring the harvest in, 
I don’t want to eat any other kind. 
And Tom Said, 

“I spent the last five days in the back of a truck, with a flat of strawberries and a case of Romaine, 
All so you could pretend that the seasons don’t exist, which by the way, I think is insane.” 
He said, “It’s January, why don’t you eat a rutabaga or a red potato? 
I was bred to store and ship, so I’m mealy, pale and tasteless, I’m no Ramapo!” 
I said, “Tom, I have to agree because…” 

I want my tomatoes to come from New Jersey. 
I want them to ripen on the vine. 
I want to get them at the farm stand, the day they bring the harvest in, 
I don’t want to eat any other kind. 
And Tom Said, 

“You knew this day was coming and you could have been prepared, it’s not that hard to do. 
There are many ways to preserve a tomato, canning, freezing and drying just to name a few. 
And then in January, you can pull a jar down off the shelf and break the seal, 
Take some roasted Romas out of the freezer, have sun dried tomatoes at every meal.” 
I said, “Tom, I have to agree because…” 

I want my tomatoes to come from New Jersey. 
I want them to ripen on the vine. 
I want to get them at the farm stand, the day they bring the harvest in, 
I don’t want to eat any other kind. 
Any other kind, 
Any other kind. 

Click here to return to the Stories page.

More Tomato Stories

There is absolutley nothing like the taste of Jersey Tomato right off the vine. For me, that is the taste of summer. 

I never could eat those pale, mealy things they sell in the grocery store in January, hard and pinkish on the outside with greenish seeds. A little research reveals why. The tomatoes grown in warmer climates for shipment to New Jersey in the winter are bred to store well and ship well, not to taste good. And let's not even talk about the nutritional comparison. 

One day, in the grocery store, I spotted those celophane wrapped three packs containing ghosts of tomatoes, I started humming a little melody to myself, and before long, I had a song about a tomato named Tom. 

At that time, the only tomatoes in my home were from the local farm market, a friends's garden, or a pot on my deck. 

Then I read another book: 
"Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit." by Barry Estabrook 

And now I am a local tomato crusader. 

Click here to go back to the Stories page.

Link to my Vegetarian Cooking Blog