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WEEKEND EDITION
02.24.18 - 02.25.18 Volume 17 Issue 84
@smdailypress
Fresh Finds: Black Cherry Tomatoes
WHAT’S UP WESTSIDE ..................PAGE 2 EDUCATOR SPOTLIGHT ................PAGE 4 CHARITY FARMERS MARKET ......PAGE 5 CRIME WATCH ..................................PAGE 8 MYSTERY REVEALED ....................PAGE 9
@smdailypress
Santa Monica Daily Press
smdp.com
Police searching for home invasion suspect
Matthew Hall
INVESTIGATION: Several areas had police tape around them Friday as officers searched for a home invasion suspect.
MATTHEW HALL Daily Press Editor
Kate Cagle
YOU SAY TOMATO: A variety of tomatoes are available at the Santa Monica Farmers Markets.
KATE CAGLE Daily Press Staff Writer
Who says tomatoes have to be red? Under the shady canopy of Tamai Family Farm’s stall at the Wednesday Downtown and Saturday Virginia Avenue Park markets, you can find cherry tomatoes in orange (sungold), red (sweet aztecas) and purple (black cherry). While cherry tomatoes are technically out of season, the Tamai’s keep their plants producing ten months out of the year in large hoop houses on about 30 acres of land in Camarillo. “They grow in the ground in soil but become a lot sweeter than the ones in season because it takes them a lot longer to ripen,” said Julia Tamai, who has been helping to sell produce at Santa Monica’s farmers’ markets since she was about ten years old. The black cherry tomatoes are a rare variety that have the distinct rustic color and buttery flavor of an heirloom tomato. Tamai says this weekend is the perfect time to give one a try. “They are usually a lot juicer but now that it’s getting cold the skin is getting a little
firmer,” Tamai said. “That’s probably the sweetest one right now. It’s reminiscent of a big heirloom tomato.” Tomatoes are an interesting case study in globalism. The Aztecs were the first to cultivate the tomato and called it ‘tomatl’ near present day Mexico City. When the Spanish colonized the Americas, they brought the nightshade back to Europe and then all over the world. It took the vines more than a century to make it to British colonies in North America. Thomas Jefferson ate them in Paris and sent some seeds back home, according to the book The Tomato in America: Early History, Culture and Cookery. If you’re wondering if it’s a fruit or a vegetable - it’s technically a berry but legally a vegetable in the United States. The Supreme Court declared it so in 1893’s Nix v. Hedden, a case involving differing tariffs on fruits and vegetables. Even though the dictionary declared them a fruit, the justices unanimously agreed that everyone considers them a vegetable, as well as cucumbers, squashes, beans and peas. SEE TOMATOES PAGE 6
Police officers are actively searching for a suspect connected to a violent home invasion attempt near Santa Monica High School at about 3:30 a.m. Friday morning. According to Lieutenant Saul Rodriguez, officers were called to the 1700 block of 5th Street (between Santa Monica High
School and the Doubletree Hotel) for an “unknown trouble” call in an apartment complex. Officers found a woman suffering from stab wounds and determined a male suspect had broken into her home while she was sleeping. “The suspect grabbed a knife from the kitchen and demanded money and property,” said a stateSEE SUSPECT PAGE 7
SMMUSD Education Foundation provides quarterly report ANGEL CARRERAS Daily Press Staff Writer
Santa Monica-Malibu Education Foundation has seen donations and participation increase in the past year as the local organization continues to reach out to parents and corporations to fund schools. On February 15, SMMEF provided their quarterly report, an update on money fundraised and future goals to the Board of Education.
Established in 1982, the Education Foundation was “organized by a dedicated group of parents, community leaders, and local business owners to enhance and supplement the curriculum of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District,” according to the foundation’s website. Associate Director Rachel Faulkner presented the item to the board, highlighting that parSEE SMMUSD PAGE 4
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