20 May Sun 2018
Tomato Powders are Very Versatile©
Tomato Powders are Very Versatile©
By Arlene Wright-Correll
First off let me remind those of you who are health conscious that you can buy salt free tomato powder and you can buy sugar free tomato powder. These are also gluten free and are great for vegans.
Both these naturally antioxidant rich tomato powders boast high levels of vitamins A, C, and K, making it a perfect choice for a healthier you! Non-GMO! Getting your veggies has never been so easy... and delicious! Once opened, tomato powder is hypersensitive to moisture, so store it in your refrigerator to enjoy the fresh tomato taste for years!
We create and process both at Home Farm Herbery and we can tell you that they are both great tasting and have a wonderful aroma to say nothing of rich and strong tomato flavor. We use it in tomato sauces, to make tomato paste and on our pizzas and in our pasta. We put them in soups, or make our own tomato soup and even make our own tomato juices.
We like the fact that they take up much less room than canned products and if you are canning yourself you will discover all that hard, hot work is done and as we have said these powders are good for years. Just add up the cost of breakable canning jars, replaceable lids, hours of labor and possible contamination as opposed to the cost of tomato powder.
Once you decide whether you want sugar free or salt free or even if you don’t care the decisions is easy.
Here is how to make some things with tomato powder.
*Note: This recipe for 8-oz. of tomato sauce works great if you already have a recipe that you use tomato sauce in that you love!
INGREDIENTS:
¼ Cup + 2 Tbsp. Tomato Powder
1/8 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. onion powder
¼ tsp. garlic powder
¾ Cup + 2 Tbsp. water
DIRECTIONS:
Heat the water until almost boiling. In a small bowl combine the tomato powder, salt, onion powder and garlic powder. Pour hot water over powder mixture and stir until thoroughly dissolved. Use in place of an 8-oz. can of tomato sauce in any recipe.
Making tomato juice using tomato powder is really easy. We simply stir 2 tablespoons tomato powder into 8 ounces of cold water for a refreshing tomato juice without all the nasty sodium and preservatives of the store-bought stuff. It is a lot cheaper and less land fill waste than store-bought stuff also.
At Home Farm Herbery we make this Pizza sauce simply by combining 1/2 cup tomato powder and 1 1/2 cups water in a sauce pan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and stir in 1/2 teaspoon each of garlic powder and a pinch of salt. Add 1 tsp. of sugar or a few drops of stevia to counter the acidity, and simmer until the sauce is thick. We always use a pinch of our stevia leaf or stevia powder.
When we want Tomato paste we only need a tablespoon or two of tomato paste, we don’t open a can. We simply mix 2 parts tomato powder to 1 part water to make as much or as little tomato paste as we need.
We often make instant tomato soup by stirring 2 tablespoons of tomato powder into 8 ounces of boiling water. Add a pinch of onion and/or garlic powder, and salt and pepper to taste. It’s great any time of the year and especially without any chemicals or whatever things the big manufactures use.
These products are a great way to stretch your food dollars especially in these times and speaking of these times we are finding our dollars spent for long lasting dehydrated or sun dried fruits and vegetables are better spent and sitting in our pantry than sitting in a bank.
May the Creative Force be with you!
Arlene Wright-Correll