This post may contain affiliate links. Click here for my affiliate disclosure. If you purchase items through my affiliate links, I receive a small commission but your price doesn't change.
Some friends from church have been gifting us an abundance of fresh, juicy tomatoes. This is how I’ve been using them!
THM Tomato Guidelines
Tomatoes are kind of in that grey area – they’re technically a fruit and higher in carbs than veggies like zucchini and celery and mushrooms, but they’re not up there with the likes of apples and pears and cherries. What’s the Trim Healthy Mama stance on tomatoes?
According to the last info I’ve seen, tomatoes are considered “non starchy” on THM and the carbs do not count. However, it’s recommended that they are moderated in a THM S setting. Stick to half a large raw tomato, or 1 cup of tomato sauce, in an S setting. You can have a bit more in a FP setting since you don’t have the extra fats to pit against the carbs, and feel free to go bonkers in an E meal!
But First…Tuberoses
My friend who gave me those whopping big tomatoes (hi Violet!) also gave me these delightful flowers. They have an incredible fragrance – and lots of it! They really perfume the house, especially in the evening.
Violet said that she’s heard them called “tube lilies” or “tube roses,” and they come from a bulb. I looked them up and believe they are Polianthes tuberosa. Believe me, I’m adding these to my list of things to plant when we eventually settle down somewhere for awhile with a place to grow things.
The Basics
Simply slice a large beefsteak tomato, lay it on a plate, and drizzle with olive oil, salt, pepper, and onion powder.
Enjoy with a knife and fork as a salad item (THM S) or use to top toasted sourdough bread spread with a little mayo (THM XO).
Bonus Recipe – Tuna Salad
Some easy tuna salad makes the perfect light summery meal, especially when accompanied by a tomato salad of some sort!
Simply combine (drained) canned tuna, plenty of chopped dill pickles and celery, and a creamy dressing of some sort. (THM S)
I used a Thousand Island dressing that Ryan brought home from work, but that’s not really THM friendly due to the sugar. I’m sure anything mayo-based would work. My favorite Ranch recipe would probably be perfect! My friend Dawn has a THM friendly Thousand Island dressing recipe that would be great as well.
Serve tuna salad on tomato or cucumber slices, over lettuce, in a low carb wrap, with Light Rye Wasa crackers (1 for an S, or more for a XO), or on sourdough bread (XO).
Tomato Salads
Caprese Salad
Hands down my favorite summer salad. Summer on a plate. I have a pretty picture to show you because I have an actual recipe lurking somewhere on my computer to share eventually, from back when I had fresh basil growing in my front flowerbed at our old house in Ohio.
But for today, I’ll just give you a quick synopsis. Layer slices of fresh tomato and fresh mozzarella on a plate with fresh basil leaves. Whisk together some olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and some pesto if you’re feelin’ fancy. You can add a splash of balsamic vinegar if you like. Drizzle the oil dressing over the plate of summer goodies.
You can also chop everything up into uniform bite sized pieces and stir the dressing into it. Not quite as pretty, but easier to eat.
THM S
Tomato & Cucumber Salad
- Chunked cucumbers (seeded if squishy)
- Cubed Roma tomatoes (or whole or halved cherry tomatoes)
- Fresh mozzarella chunks
- Olive oil (use more oil than vinegar)
- Vinegar of choice
- Basil pesto (plenty!)
- Salt & pepper
VARIATIONS:
- Add green or black olives
- Turn it into a pasta salad by adding cooked Dreamfields pasta, and add some cubed grilled chicken to turn THAT into a meal!
THM S
The pesto I buy at Aldi. It’s summer in a jar.
4 Ingredient Caesar Salad
Toss shredded romaine and halved cherry tomatoes with Caesar dressing. Top with a few more tomatoes for garnish and some shredded parmesan cheese. (NOT the green can kind this time. Aldi sells tubs of shredded parm beside the crumbled feta, or freshly grate/shred the real deal.) Or use blue cheese if that’s all you’ve got (like me in the pictures here). But I’m obsessed with real parm right now.
I thought a crumbled Wasa cracker would be good in this too for some crunch – in lieu of the standard croutons – but I was out. Bacon and sunflower seeds would be good too.
Salt & pepper to taste at the table if desired. Adding extra seasoning lets you get away with a lighter coating of dressing (aka fewer calories).
THM S
Check out my “Low Carb Croutons” recipe here if you want a delicious salad topper!
Egg Salad on Tomato Slices
This is a fun way to serve egg salad, tuna salad, chicken salad – any mayo & protein based “salad.” Full of summer and low carb.
You can find an egg salad recipe here on my blog as well as an updated one in Convenient Food, my second cookbook. Classic Egg Salad – page 234
THM S
Tomato Sandwiches
I suppose this blog post is rather uninventive, seeing as most of the ideas listed here are either salads or some form of tomatoes + bread. But tomatoes + bread are an inspired combination. These are real-life things that we eat and enjoy, not funky recipes made up just to have something to post about. ;P
The bread you see in these pictures is another rye sourdough experiment. Some day I WILL get around to posting about sourdough, but that might have to happen after the children are grown. If the internet still exists by then.
If you want sourdough recipes in the meantime, check out Glenda’s recipes over at Around the Family Table.
You can also use your favorite storebought sprouted bread.
The Tomato Sandwich
This can be bread, mayo, tomato, seasoning.
This can be bread, mayo, CHEESE, tomato, seasoning.
This can be bread, mayo, MUSTARD, CHEESE, LUNCH MEAT, LETTUCE, tomato, seasoning.
Take your pick.
Combining bread (carbs) with fats (mayo, cheese, fatty meats) would make this a THM XO. You can stay in E territory by keeping total fats to <5g.
Tomato & Ricotta Toast
This is the most trendy I’ve felt since…well, a long time.
Sourdough toast + part skim ricotta + tomato + Everything But the Bagel Seasoning
If you keep the fat in the ricotta to <5g, this is a THM E.
Reduced fat cream cheese would also be good in place of the ricotta. Same fat rules apply.
The BLT
Possibly my favorite?
I used turkey bacon because whenever I make pork bacon, my doctor husband painstakingly picks all the fat off. I used to think he was crazy. After 5 years of marriage, I now do the same thing….
So turkey bacon is much easier. XD
Fresh sourdough rye bread, mayo, muenster or Swiss cheese, turkey bacon, lettuce, tomato, salt and pepper. A lovely THM XO, or perhaps only an S Helper if you make it open face. I suppose that applies to most of these sandwiches.
I usually bake my turkey bacon in the oven, but tonight I learned that it is very good grilled! I do NOT recommend grilling pork bacon, though. We tried that once when I was growing up because someone recommended the technique to us, but something backfired – literally. The entire back of the grill was on fire, and seeing as it was on our back porch, the house siding very nearly caught fire as well.
I digress.
Melt Sandwiches
I grew up with these after a family from our church introduced us to them at a church function.
Top sourdough bread with mayo, Mrs. Dash seasoning (or your favorite garlic/herb seasoning blend), lunch meat, a slice of cheese of your choice, and a thin slice of tomato, in that order. Season with salt.
Bake at 425* until the sandwiches are heated through, the cheese is melted, and the edges are browning. Serve with a salad and watermelon for the ultimate summer meal. If you make them right and don’t skimp on the mayo and cheese, these sandwiches are going to be a THM XO anyway so you might as well have some watermelon too.
Smaller, firmer tomatoes are best here. Use thin slices so the tomatoes can dehydrate a bit in the oven and don’t sog out the bread.
The original recipe used French bread. Whole grain sourdough is definitely heavier and not as crispy-crunchy, but still plenty good.
Supervisor of Photography, Noah Burkholder
So Many Crossovers!
Yeah, I realize that. My season of life has obviously changed quite a bit from when I was a single teenager actively posting recipes twice a week about a decade ago. 😉 Noah is still nursing a little bit, and I find that I don’t really have to worry about crossovers when nursing. And sandwiches are great for hungry skinny husbands and growing children!
Fresh Salsa
This is one of my absolute favorite ways to eat tomatoes. Heavy on the cilantro and salt, with a little garlic and acidity and a touch of cumin. And please leave out the green bell peppers.
If you need a recipe, here’s an old one. I never actually follow a recipe because I’m just trying to clean out the fridge and work with what I have.
To be very honest, I enjoy this with…good ol’ corn tortilla chips. NOT Trim Healthy Mama friendly. Probably NOT that healthy. But unbeatable with fresh salsa. But I also love this salsa poured over everything from burritos to enchiladas to eggs to quesadillas to the weird lentil fritter things I made last week.
You can use baked corn tortilla chips in a THM E setting if you can find those. In my experience, trying to find baked tortilla chips is like Arthur’s knights’ looking for the Holy Grail. You can also make your own THM FP chips by baking low carb tortillas until crispy.
Other Tomato-y Ideas
Some of these are no-brainers. Others are unfiltered and untested – just a snapshot into my culinary brain. I’ll let you decipher which are which. 😉
- Warm tomato, bacon, onion, and garlic jam on toast or over meat
- Watermelon, yellow cherry tomato, mint, feta, tajin salad
- Cube and use fresh on enchiladas, tacos, or falafel pitas
- Use thin slices as garnish on the top of a baked quiche (before baking)
- Throw into sauces or chili, caramelize and use in pasta, add to cucumber or pasta salads
Let me know…
What’s YOUR favorite way to enjoy fresh tomatoes? Leave a comment below!
Want to see more?
Do you have my cookbooks yet?
Join the club!
1 slice of toast spread with laughing cow, a slice of a yummy tomato, and cooked egg whites. Yum!
Dear Briana, l took a large beefsteak tomato along to the restaurant last evening. The waiter brought out a stack of plates, and our group ate it while we waited for the slow food. Salt and pepper were good. But as ma lngalls used to say, hunger is the best sauce. Fresh garden vegetables straight from the garden are hard to beat. I love your inspirations. Thank-you, Rosey
Ah yes, I love that quote. =)
I love, love, love tomatoes! I think my most favorite way to eat them is fresh off the vine from my garden! 😁 My other favorite way is diced or sliced (or made into salsa!) and put on top of, well, anything! I had four nice sized Campari tomatoes on my two tostadas tonight. I love eating them fresh and uncooked! I am going to try the melt and use a slice of Ezekiel bread. It sounds really good! While I’m still in losing weight-mode, I have found that crossovers not only help me stay on plan, but they have actually helped me to lose weight, especially if eaten at breakfast. The melt will make a yummy morning meal! Thank you, Briana!
I enjoy sliced tomatoes and sliced cucumbers together with Ranch Dressing. I love homemade salsa with tortilla chips. Thanks for sharing.
Mmmm…sounds like a simple but yummy salad!