HEALTHY DISH
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recipe makeovers full of modern flavor
Fresh Marinara Sauce in Minutes
If you have five minutes, then you have time to make this no-stir, no-simmer, über-healthy tomato sauce. BY JONNY BOWDEN, PHD, CNS, AND JEANNETTE BESSINGER, CHHC
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FEATURED INGREDIENT
Tomatoes
Before we get to how great tomatoes are for you, let’s settle one thing: Are tomatoes a fruit or a vegetable? Actually, they’re both. Botanically speaking, the tomato is a fruit. But as a practical matter, everyone uses tomatoes as a vegetable. So, in 1893, the U.S. Supreme Court settled the matter and ruled that the tomato is to be classified legally as a vegetable, botany be darned. Whatever you call them, tomatoes are loaded with vitamins and antioxidants, but the superstar of the bunch is a member of the carotenoid family known as lycopene. CUT YOUR CANCER RISK
Research shows that lycopene is associated with significant reduction in prostate cancer risk. In 1995, the Journal of the National Cancer Institute published a study conducted by Harvard University researchers looking at the eating habits of more than 47,000 men between 40 and 75. They found that those eating 10 servings or more a week of tomatoes, tomato sauce, tomato juice, and even pizza had 45 percent fewer prostate cancers than men who ate fewer than two servings a week. Evidence indicates that lycopene also protects against lung and stomach cancers, and preliminary research shows protection against pancreatic, oral, colorectal, breast, and cervical cancers. Lycopene also protects the heart against oxidative damage. And a study published in the American Heart Journal showed that treatment with tomato extract can reduce blood pressure.
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Photo: Getty Images
GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR TOMATOES
The anticancer properties of lycopene are especially beneficial when consumed with fatty foods, such as avocado. Why? Because carotenoids are fat-soluble nutrients. To get maximum absorption, you need to eat them with a little fat. My favorites for tomato-based dishes or salads are either extra virgin olive oil or Malaysian palm oil. Besides lycopene, tomatoes contain a variety of other powerful phytochemicals, including lutein—also found in the retina of our eyes and necessary for healthy vision. The lutein in tomatoes may help prevent macular degeneration, a leading cause of blindness in older adults, and may help improve vision. Lutein may also help prevent or slow the thickening of arteries known as atherosclerosis.
Photo: Getty Images
There’s a whole lot to love about Mediterranean eating. Exhibit A: marinara sauce. This underappreciated staple of Italian cuisine is actually one of the most nutritious sauces you can put on your food, and it’s one of the reasons pizza, when it’s made with the right ingredients, can be a health food. After all, what’s not to like about tomatoes, vegetables, garlic, olive oil, and fresh seasonings? You almost feel healthier just reading the list of ingredients! Antioxidants and anti-inflammatories abound, topped off by my personal choice for the ultimate medicinal food—olive oil! Now here’s the beauty part. Ordinarily, the only downside of homemade marinara sauce is the amount of time it takes to make. Usually, you have to simmer it for hours. But not with this recipe. Chef Jeannette has opted for blending the ingredients in a high-power blender or food processor, which cuts the prep time from hours to minutes and produces an incredibly nutrientrich blended sauce. It’s worth noting that the sauce is essentially raw as opposed to cooked. While a slow-cooked sauce is also wonderfully healthy, most of us don’t get enough raw foods in our diets, and this is a great way to correct that omission!
