Heirloom Tomatoes..Beautiful and Tasty

This spring I planted four tomato plants, two of them heirloom tomato plants. What is an heirloom tomato? An heirloom is generally considered to be a variety that has been passed down, through several generations of a family because of it's valued characteristics. Since "heirloom" varieties have become popular in the past few years there have been liberties taken with the use of this term for commercial purposes. Heirlooms come in many different colors sizes and shapes. They add a beauty and freshness to salads, and I love using them.

We all know that tomatoes have many health benefits. They are rich in lycopene, one of the most concentrated carotenoids found in the blood. Tomatoes are particularly beneficial to men in keeping the incidence of prostate cancer to a minimum. Men who ate more than 10 servings of tomato-based foods a week had a 35%lower risk for prostate cancer than men who ate less than one and a half servings per week. Tomatoes also provide solid defense agaist cervical and ovarian cancer. The only negative for tomatoes is that they increase the amount of acid in your system, thus they are not good for thoses with acid reflux (heartburn). Overall, the good outweighs the bad, and there is nothing sweeter or juicier than a just picked fresh tomato. Local supermarkets all carry heirloom tomatoes today or go to your local farmer's market and get some that have just been picked.

Below is a simple recipe for heirloom tomatoes, perfect for summer.

Heirloom Tomatoes with Lemon Tahini

1/2 tahini (sesame seed paste)
zest of 2 lemons
5 T. fresh lemon juice
8 medium heirloom tomatoes (washed and cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 lemon(thinly sliced, for garnish)

In the bowl of a food processor, place tahini, half of lemon zest and lemon juice,. Pulse to combine.
With the motor running, add 7-8 T. cold water and continue to process until mixture is thick and smooth. Add salt to taste and refrigerate until cold.
Bring tahini to room temperature. Arrange tomatoes on a plate in a tight overlapping pattern: drizzle half the tahini over the tomatoes. Scatter remaining lemon zest on top. Garnish with lemon slices. Sprinkle fresh cracked pepper and ground kosher salt (or your favorite speciality salt) on top and enjoy. My mouth is watering just thinking about it. Fresh ground salt and pepper really enhance the flavor, so don't just use plain salt from a salt shaker. It's not the same...Enjoy.