Meet family nutrition expert, Liz Weiss, MS, RDN! Liz is our Tomato Wellness Registered Dietitian for May 2021, and she’ll be busy all month sharing family-pleasing recipes starring tomato products — salsa, canned tomatoes, and marinara. Liz is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and host of the Liz’s Healthy Table blog and podcast. If you head to her website, you’ll find easy and nourishing recipes aimed at making family mealtime doable and delicious; entertaining cooking videos; e-cookbooks; and free printables including her aisle-by-aisle Supermarket Shopping List and 7-Day Meal Planner. Liz has written several cookbooks including the playful Color, Cook, Eat! coloring cookbook series, and she is a content contributor to Today’s Dietitian magazine and the American Institute for Cancer Research. Liz received her undergrad nutrition degree from the University of Rhode Island, her Master’s in Nutrition Communications from Boston University, and a Professional Chef’s Certificate from the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts. You can find Liz on various social platforms including Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.
Head over to the Tomato Wellness Facebook page on May 26th at 1pm ET to tune into a cooking demo with Liz! She will be whipping up a new recipe for Hummus Shakshuka Bowls, so you don’t want to miss it!
Liz says, “Like many busy parents and working professionals, a well-stocked pantry saved the day at mealtime during the pandemic. With fewer trips to the grocery store, I turned to pantry staples like jarred pasta sauce, salsa, and canned crushed tomatoes to get healthy meals on my family’s table night after night. From my Last-Minute Black Bean Soup made with salsa to my Pantry Peanut Butter Chickpea Soup made with canned tomato sauce, tomato products saved the day (and provided important nourishment) as we gathered around the table.”
Need more dinner inspiration? Check out some of Liz’s favorite recipes featuring tomato products!
8 Family-Friendly Dinner Recipes from Liz Weiss, MS, RDN
Make dinner a cinch with these delicious recipes! They are all designed to make feeding families easier and healthier, so go ahead and get cooking today.
You can make this as a very special snack for your kids (imagine serving this after school!) or when you're entertaining friends. Serve with any favorite crunchy veggie.
If you’re looking for a quick, delicious and comforting meal that’s made with not one, not two, but three convenient canned foods, look no further than these cute, fun-to-eat Veggie Bean Cakes with Quick Tomato Basil Sauce.
This hearty barley, carrot, and chickpea soup has a lovely flavor, meaty texture, and an I-need-to-slurp-this-soup-now aroma. You can make it low and slow in the slow cooker or in just 7 minutes in your trusty Instant Pot.
This hearty recipe for Macaroni Minestrone Soup is a one-bowl meal brimming with kid-friendly elbow pasta and three vegetables—zucchini, carrots, and fiber-filled canned beans. Every satisfying slurp is guaranteed to go down with a smile.
This Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili is hearty and delicious, and when you set out a bunch of toppings like diced avocado, shredded cheese, cilantro, and plain Greek yogurt, everyone can customize their own savory bowls.
This homemade, healthy, one-pot version of Beefaroni is easy to make, and it features nutrient-rich lean ground beef, whole grain pasta, mushrooms, and bell pepper.
Vegetarian, vegan, and kid friendly, this Lentil Alphabet Soup is irresistible thanks to the playful pasta, and it’s filled with fiber and protein thanks to the lentils and vegetables. I have no doubt your kids will happily slurp up every last spoonful.
This family-pleasing tortilla soup comes together quickly with chicken or vegetable broth, black beans, corn kernels and fire-roasted tomatoes. The toppings of homemade tortilla chips, avocado, cilantro, and shredded cheese bring it all together.
Do you prefer fresh, cooked, or canned tomatoes? While both are nutritious, cooked and canned tomatoes may actually contribute more to long-term health benefits in comparison to fresh tomatoes! Read on to learn more about the benefits of canned tomato products and how YOU can easily incorporate them into your daily recipes.
Thanks to busy schedules that leave little time for cooking nutritious meals at home, how are we expected to get all our nutrients in every single meal? This is a concern for many, so you are not alone. One easy, affordable way to secretly pack in those nutrients is by purchasing canned products, specifically canned tomatoes. These products range from tomato paste, diced tomatoes, salsa, and tomato sauce. They are easy to find at your local grocery store and contain incredible ingredients that will enable you to lessen your worries about obtaining proper nutrient intake.
In general, all tomato products help to improve the health of the general population, but an increasing amount of research studies have shown that there is more lycopene availability found in heated, cooked, or canned tomatoes when compared to fresh tomatoes—making them more effective in the long run. According to the American Institute for Cancer Research, cooked tomatoes play more of an effective role in reducing the risk of prostate cancer. Unfortunate as it is, prostate cancer is one of the top 2 most common cancers in the world and has resulted in numerous deaths. However, recent science-based evidence has shown that the increase in lycopene, an antioxidant found in tomatoes, can help to reduce the risk of prostate cancer. The research study focused on the comparison between men who failed to consume any tomato products throughout the week with men who consumed canned and cooked tomatoes about five to six times a week. The results showed that those who consumed tomato products were able to reduce their risk of prostate cancer by 28%, which goes to show just how powerful food can play a role in our overall health.
Although the impacts of cooked and canned tomato products may outweigh the benefits of fresh tomatoes, it’s still useful to incorporate tomatoes into your weekly recipes so that you can achieve optimal health and reduce your risk of preventable cancers. Whether it’s pasta, pizza, or a taco dish, tomato products are super easy to use and will save you time and money while boosting your nutrient intake. So, what are you planning to whip up in the kitchen for your family this week? Let us know in the comments below!
Who doesn’t love pizza? Get your craving satisfied with these delightful Pizza Rolls with Homemade Marinara, perfect for a fun party appetizer or extra special side dish. This super simple recipe uses convenient and affordable ingredients like premade crescent rolls and canned diced tomatoes yet tastes just like a fresh homemade pizza.
You can feel good about serving these tasty bites with a savory sauce, as canned tomatoes are chock-full of nutrition. Did you know that canned tomatoes actually contain more of some nutrients than fresh? Lycopene, the plant compound that is responsible for giving tomatoes their signature red color, becomes more bioavailable when cooked, translating to more health benefits for you and your family. In order to achieve maximum health benefits associated with lycopene, it is recommended to consume tomato products with a heart healthy fat, such as olive oil or avocado. That’s why we recommend enjoying lycopene and its health benefits through delicious foods such as lasagna, curries, and bolognese.
Want to boost your nutrient intake while enjoying a delicious bowl of pasta? Well, you’re in luck! An increasing amount of research has shown that the consumption of canned tomatoes is the perfect opportunity to eat a scrumptious meal while incorporating the daily recommended vitamins and minerals to fuel your body. Read on to find out more about the health-promoting effects of tomatoes, a vibrant red fruit that is loved by many.
Eating well-balanced, plant-powered meals everyday can be challenging, especially if you are constantly on the go. If you are looking for ways to cook easy, nutrient-packed meals for you and your family to enjoy, yet might be lacking the time and energy to do so, we have the inside scoop for you—invest in canned tomato products! By doing so, you will be able to whip up home-made, tomato-based recipes in under 30 minutes, and who doesn’t want that?
The increase in tomato products around the world isn’t just a coincidence. In fact, the incorporation of canned tomato products in various recipes is an affordable, accessible, and sustainable option, which is why everyone is raving about canned tomatoes. Not only is there a massive amount of tomato production each year, but canned tomatoes also offer a great source of nutrients for the human body. This research study focuses on the bioactive compounds and health-promoting effects of tomatoes that make them incredibly effective and enhance quality of life. One of the many important components found in tomatoes includes lycopene, which has been shown to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties. Research studies provide sufficient evidence to suggest that tomatoes are powerful fruits, offering a ton of vitamins and minerals for our body’s to function properly. In fact, these nutrient-packed fruits have the power to prevent chronic noncommunicable diseases, such as obesity, coronary heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes.
When comprehending all this information about the benefits of canned tomatoes, it’s safe to say that canned tomatoes should be a staple in your pantry. Not only do they have the power to improve your long-term health, but they are incredibly versatile and easy to incorporate into numerous dishes!
One-skillet meals are the ultimate solution for getting delicious food on the table in no time, plus they make for easy clean up. This Shepherd’s Pie Hot Dish is a spin on the classic dish, made easier with pantry staples like canned tomatoes, and frozen tater tots. In less than an hour, you can prepare a hearty and nutritious meal your whole family will love.
With lean protein from ground beef, nourishing carbohydrates from potatoes, and colorful veggies like tomatoes and green beans, this one dish makes for a perfectly balanced meal. Canned diced tomatoes provide important nutrients like vitamin C, potassium, and lycopene, improving your immune health, blood pressure, and protecting you against certain cancers, such as prostate cancer. Some studies suggest that men who consume more tomato products can reduce the risk of prostate cancer, and since lycopene can be found in tomato products, there are anti-carcinogenic compounds. 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 a healthy, well-balanced diet, so enjoy this delicious meal and feel good about what you are putting into your body!
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