Philly Cheese Steak Smothered in Tomatoes

Philly Cheese Steak Smothered in Tomatoes

by | Sep 24, 2019 | Recipes

This lighter version of a classic favorite Philly Cheese Steak sandwich will help keep Dad healthy, while also keeping his taste buds more than satisfied. Plus, this recipe is full of cancer-fighting lycopene thanks to the canned tomato products! You can have this sandwich on its own, or pair it with your favorite salad and side dish for a filling, nutritious dinner everyone is sure to love!

Canned tomatoes are so much more than convenient pantry staples. They also provide the cancer fighting compound called lycopene! In fact, more than 1.3 million men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year, and numerous studies suggest that lycopene has cancer-fighting properties. Lycopene can be found in tomato products, which contain anti-carcinogenic compounds, such as vitamin A, vitamin C, and fiber. With early detection and higher intake of fruits and vegetables, prostate cancer can be reduced. Thus, it’s important to ensure that you are eating healthy, well-balanced meals and staying active on a daily basis. You can increase lycopene in your diet by adding canned tomatoes into your favorite meals, such as pizza, stir fries, or even smoothies to boost those benefits! So go ahead, try out this Philly cheese steak sandwich and reap the health benefits it provides!

Philly Cheese Steak Smothered in Tomatoes

Philly Cheese Steak Smothered in Tomatoes

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 lb. Lean skirt steak, thinly sliced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 small yellow onion, sliced
  • 2 oz portobello mushrooms, sliced
  • 1 green bell pepper, sliced
  • 1 15-oz can tomato sauce, no salt added
  • Ground black pepper, as desired
  • ¼ tsp oregano
  • 4 oz mozzarella cheese, part skim
  • 4 whole grain rolls (hoagie or submarine), split

Instructions

    1. Heat olive oil in a large skillet or sauté pan.
    2. Place sliced steak into the pan and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes.
    3. Add garlic and onions, cooking for 2 minutes.
    4. Add mushrooms and peppers and simmer for an additional 10 minutes.
    5. Add tomato sauce, black pepper and oregano and bring to simmer. Cook until vegetables and meat are very tender.
    6. Arrange meat, vegetables and sauce over split roll and top with 1 oz of mozzarella cheese.

Nutrition Information:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 597Total Fat: 33gSodium: 531mgCarbohydrates: 41gFiber: 6gProtein: 36g
© Tomato Wellness

If you’re looking for other delicious recipes that your dad you will love, check out some of our favorites:

Easy Chicken Curry
Swiss Chard Pecan Lasagna
Black Bean Corn Chili

What this Dietitian Learned on a Cannery Tour

What this Dietitian Learned on a Cannery Tour

by | Sep 4, 2019 | Food and Nutrition

What this Dietitian Learned on a Cannery Tour

By Leslie Schilling, RD 

No foods were quite so delicious to me as a tomato sandwich on the beach with my family in the summertime, or my mom’s baked spaghetti loaded with tomato sauce and canned diced tomatoes. In full disclosure, I’ve always been a tomato lover. So, naturally, I was honored to be invited on a tour visiting family farms that produce around 95% of all the canned tomatoes in the United States. We also visited peach and pear farms and learned how many of these beautiful fruits are picked, transported, and canned, in a matter of hours. Let me tell you what I learned about cans, and about myself.

I had canned food amnesia (and I bet I’m not alone).

To be honest, I’d forgotten about canned produce. Between my formal education as a dietitian and a person who has the privilege to buy fresh produce, canned produce had all but disappeared from my grocery list and kitchen. Seeing the process of produce being picked fresh from the field, carefully prepared, and canned, reminded me that I’ve been missing out on the nutrition that canned foods can provide (and sadly, so were my clients). As a dietitian, my clients deserve recommendations that are both nutrient-rich and cost-effective. This tour helped me remember that cans can deliver quality nutrition and reduce the prep time needed to get busy families around a table together. Regardless of your household food budget, canned produce can play a role in every kitchen. 

Steel cans are recyclable – 100% recyclable. 

My mind was blown on this one. Did you know that a magnet can retrieve steel cans from a kitchen trash bag that ended up in a landfill? That can you never recycled? I didn’t either. Steel cans are retrieved from either landfills or recycling plants and remade into new cans. This makes steel cans a smart choice for families looking to add nutrition and care for the environment we live in. 

Nutrition sealed in time.

The canning process is one that has been around for more than a hundred years. While the technology involved in monitoring a cannery may look like a spaceship control center, the process remains simple, clean, and effective. As I watched tomatoes being placed into a rolling water bath, flash-steamed, and promptly sealed, it reminded of why my grandmother canned tomatoes right out of the garden. She’d say they’re fresh now, and they’ll be just as fresh when we open them in the winter. 

Not only is the freshness sealed in, the carotenoids that make tomatoes a nutritional powerhouse are amplified. Canned tomatoes are known for their cancer-fighting compound lycopene, which becomes 2.5 times more bioavailable after the canning process. The canning “process” (which is really just steaming or cooking), also brings out valuable nutrients in peaches. Canned peaches have higher levels of vitamin C and folate compared to the fresh fruit. 

Using canned foods can help reduce food waste. 

These days, commercially canned produce must include a best by date,  which is generally 36 months from the date of being sealed. When these canned foods are prepped, ready to open and add to a meal, we can also reduce food waste. Sadly, I’ve thrown away far too many fresh fruits and vegetables that I’ve forgotten or didn’t have time to prepare. Keeping canned produce in mind in our homes may help us add nutritional value and reduce food waste at the same time.

If you forget about the goodness of cans like I did, try to remember the acronym I created to prevent myself from ever experiencing canned food amnesia again. 

S – Sealed at the peak of freshness.

T – Takes less time and money.

I  – Can improve overall nutrition quality.

R – Can reduce food waste in fully recyclable packaging. 

Let’s help families STIR in cost-effective nutrition that’s as fresh as fresh can be. 

Big thanks to Pacific Coast Producers for hosting this amazing opportunity to see the harvest and canning process.

Leslie Schilling

Leslie Schilling

Nutrition Counseling for Families

Leslie Schilling owns a Las Vegas-based coaching practice, specializing in nutrition counseling for families, those of all ages with disordered eating concerns, and professional athletes and performers. In addition to running her practice, Leslie serves as a performance nutrition consultant for Cirque du Soleil® and an eating disorder specialist and supervisory consultant for eating disorder treatment centers in Nevada. With her warm, compassionate, and entertaining personality, Leslie been featured in media outlets like Women’s Health, Self, Pregnancy Magazine, The Yoga Journal, Bicycling, BuzzFeed, the Huffington Post, US News & World Report, and on HGTV. You may know her best as the creator of the Born To Eat® approach and co-author of the award-winning book, Born To Eat.


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