Enjoy these ‘apples of love’ while they are sun-ripened and plentiful!

It’s hard to imagine a time when Americans didn’t love fresh tomatoes, but during the Colonial era, superstition held that eating a tomato would turn your blood to acid. Tomato plants closely resemble the deadly nightshade plant, and in fact every part of a tomato plant except the fruit is toxic. First grown in Central and South America and brought to Europe by Spanish explorers, tomatoes first gained popularity as an aphrodisiac. The French even named them “pommes d’amore,” (apples of love). Since the 1940s, tomatoes grown in Hanover County, Virginia, have gained a special reputation, celebrated each summer at the Hanover Tomato Festival. Here are recipes featuring this summertime treat.

From our Readers:

Tomato & Shrimp Salad

Julia Rutland, Purcellville, Virginia

Ingredients:

	¼ cup olive oil
	3 T white balsamic vinegar
	1 T chopped fresh basil
	1 T honey
	¼ t each salt and pepper
	4 cups arugula or spring salad mix
	3 ripe yellow or red tomatoes, cut in wedges
	3 cups diced watermelon, seeds removed
	Chopped onion to taste
	1 lb. large shrimp, cooked, peeled and chilled
	½ cup feta cheese, crumbled

Directions: Whisk together olive oil, vinegar, basil, honey, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Spread greens on a serving platter. Top with tomatoes, watermelon, onion and shrimp. Drizzle dressing over salad and sprinkle with feta. Serve immediately. Makes 4 servings.

Editor’s note: Regular balsamic vinegar works well, too.

From our Readers:

Green Tomato Cake

Yvonne Burnette, Sutherland, Virginia

Ingredients:

	1 cup butter, softened
	2 cups sugar
	2 t vanilla
	3 eggs
	1 t each baking powder and salt
	3 cups flour
	1 t each cinnamon and nutmeg
	2 cups cored and chopped green tomatoes
	1 cup golden raisins
	1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9"x13" baking dish. Whip butter, sugar and vanilla with an electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs, beating well after each addition. Combine dry ingredients and gradually add to butter mixture. Stir in tomatoes, raisins and nuts and spread in baking dish. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into center of the cake comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes. Remove from pan; top with cream cheese frosting, if desired.


From our Readers:

Homemade Stewed Tomatoes

Jerry Ann Nichols, Winchester, Virginia

Ingredients:

	4 ripe tomatoes
	1⁄3 cup chopped onion
	2 T chopped green pepper
	1 T sugar or honey
	½ t salt
	¼ t pepper
	1 cup diced bread or soft crumbs

Directions: Peel tomatoes by placing them in boiling water for a minute, then allowing to cool. Cut tomatoes in large chunks, then add to a medium saucepan with their juice and next 5 ingredients. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes; stir in bread cubes or crumbs just before serving.

Send us your recipes! Your recipe contributions featuring these seasonal ingredients are welcomed for use in upcoming issues: corn, summer squash, winter squash and Virginia seafood/shellfish. Please email submissions to [email protected] or mail them to Commonwealth Kitchen, c/o Cooperative Living, P.O. Box 2340, Glen Allen, VA 23058-2340. All published submissions will receive a $20 Walmart gift card.