Heritage and identity is something that is intrinsic to our work at The Together Plan.
Knowing who we are, and where we come from matters which is why we are building a Jewish Cultural Heritage Trail in Belarus and reaching out to Belarusians in the diaspora to hear their stories. The same can be said of our foods, their heritage and where they came from. So as we are talking about tomatoes this month, we were excited to learn about Orange-1, originally developed at the Belarus Institute of Vegetable Gardening! Thank you to the Sustainable Seed Company in Utah for this great blog on how Andrey B introduced the Orange-1 to the Americans!
Picture credit: Healthline.com
All over Belarus and indeed the former Soviet Union, you will find people growing tomatoes and a whole host of other vegetables and fruits during the long hot summer months at their dachas, away from the rush of city life.
Growing your own tomatoes is simple and just a couple of plants will reward you with plenty of delicious tomatoes in the summer. There are all sizes of tomatoes to try, from the tiniest cherry types, favourites with children, through to full-flavoured giant beefsteak tomatoes.
If you are growing your own tomatoes during lockdown (to future proof this article, it’s 2020 and we are in a pandemic) be sure to follow the hints and tips from the RHS.
There is also plenty of choice of store cupboard tomato products to choose from such as tinned tomatoes, passata, sun-dried tomatoes or paste. All will produce different tastes and textures.
Link to the recipes:
- Gorgeous gazpacho
- Spicy crumb-topped cod, with tomato and cannellini bean stew
- Tomato, aubergine and bulgur salad