Tomatoes are wonderfully versatile in the kitchen and growing your own in a few pots in the garden (or even on the windowsill) couldn’t be easier. They are great to add to summer salads, pasta dishes, curries or sliced and added to a summer barbeque burger, even as part of a full English breakfast they work their wonders with a dramatic zingy entrance. At the end of the season when the last of the plant’s tomatoes are still a little green, they make a tasty green tomato Chutney that will last well into the winter months.

Tomatoes are renowned for their use in Mediterranean cuisine, especially Italian, mingling with flavours of basil and oregano, what would a pizza be with out a tomato coating first?

Because tomatoes are acidic, it’s easy to preserve tomatoes in cans, whole, chopped or as sauces, many modern pasta sauces come ready blended with herbs, onions and garlic, making it easy to add straight to a pasta dish. Of course there is nothing better than picking a sweet cherry tomato straight from the plant and indulging in it’s sweetness. Make Bruschetta with a little garlic on lightly toasted sliced bread with a dash of olive oil., coated with a generous serving of fresh chopped tomatoes and some tasty Prosciutto, it couldn’t be more simple.

Tomatoes can make their way in to a number of dishes, I always keep a few cans of chopped tomatoes and dried pasta and rice in the store cupboard ready to make a meal out of!