Tomato

Tomato Blog

So They Call Us Tomato Lovers

      So they call us Tomato Lovers? So what? Across this country and across the planet, there are tens of thousands of us Tomato Lovers. Ever have a tomato sandwich with a dash of salt, olive oil, and a sprinkle of fresh-cut basil on Italian ciabatta bread? What’s not to love? 

      Inhale a little of la dolce vita, for at one time in our life we were all amateur gardeners. We grew gardens big enough to feed our robust families and supply ingredients for Nonna’s delicious hobbies. 

Then, as the world moved on, families found it more efficient to buy a variety of grocery store, no-taste, hothouse tomatoes for salads and sandwiches, and even bought factory-made red pasta sauces. We were busy. We got used to the bland flavor. 

But our family had Uncle Tony. Zio Tony. And one day, we tasted a tomato that he had grown in his backyard garden. That was the day we discovered the aroma (momma mia!) and the true taste of a home-grown tomato. My fifteen-year-old taste buds were spoiled for life. The next time I saw him, I begged him to tell me his secrets for growing such delicious tomatoes. Uncle Tony, always ready to give a lesson, sat me down and proceeded with the first of many lectures concerning the noble tomato. Here are some of the highlights of what I learned from those lectures. 

      Hernán Cortés, an early Spanish explorer, in 1519 found tomatoes growing in Mexico and used as food by the Aztecs. When he returned to Spain, to the great relief of the Aztecs, he brought back tomato seeds as part of the plunder, along with the piles of shiny gold. The first tomato plants to bear fruit in Europe were the yellow variety, not the red. Because of the yellow color and resemblance in shape and size to the apple, it was the Italian herbalist, Pietro Andrea Mattoli, who in 1548 named the fruit “golden apple,” which translates in Italian to Pomi d’oro and today’s Pomodoro. The Nahuatl word tomatl gave rise to the Spanish word tomate, and on to the English tomato. 

      Uncle Tony went on to say that the first Italian cookbook to include tomato sauce, The Modern Steward, by Chef Antonio Latini, was published in Rome in 1692. Gardeners and cooks were mostly on their own until 1937, when Giovanni & Assunta Cantisano founded the Ragu Packing Company in Rochester, New York. He then asked me the meaning of the Italian word Ragù. Though I loved my uncle dearly, I told him that I was not a complete idiot, and that any observant Italian-American knows that Ragù is a hearty gravy, with chunks of beef, tomatoes, and finely chopped onions, celery, and carrots. With a sheepish look on his face, he changed the subject by saying that it was time for me to be a real Italian and learn about Pomodoros. 

      And don’t forget this review excerpt about John Mariani’s book, How Italian Food Conquered the World. 

“Not so long ago, Italian food was regarded as a poor man's gruel - little more than pizza, macaroni with sauce, and red wines in a box. Here, John Mariani shows how the Italian immigrants to America created, through perseverance and sheer necessity, an Italian-American food culture, and how it became a global obsession.”

      

      It was late summer when Zio appeared on our doorstep with more tomatoes and a basket of determination. “Okay sonny, you’ve had two months to read the tomato books I told you to get. If you don’t get at least 50% of these questions, you’ll have to hoe my entire garden in the spring.”

I was ready. “Fa bene, do your best, Zio. Ask away!”

“Domanda numero uno: (1) This tomato’s unique early ripening, from 50 to 62 days, is very popular with home tomato growers. Tell me its name.”

“That’s an easy one, Zio, it’s Early Girl.” 

“ Umm, bene, you’re right. My list of tomato questions is ready. No discussion. Just answer the questions. If I don’t say anything, your answer is correct. 

(2) What cocktail tomato is noted for its juiciness, high sugar content, low acidity?”

“Campari.”

(3) “Tomatoes are the most concentrated food source of what important antioxidant?”

“ Lycopene. Zio, you look shocked.” 

“No talking, until you miss a question.”

(4) “ Sauce recipe usually made with tomatoes, garlic, basil, & onions?”

“ Ha, no meat! Marinara, or in English, Mariner’s sauce.”

(5) “Italian favorite since early 19th century, named for this Italian port city of Genoa?”

“Costoluto Genovese.”    

“Deo mio.”

(6) “Variety of Italian plum tomatoes considered by chefs to be the best of pasta tomatoes?”

“San Marzano tomato.”

(7) “ Sizes range from thumb tip to golf ball?”

“Cherry tomato.”

(8) “Synonymous with tomatoes, Italian-American brand name means ‘woman of the fields’?”               

“Contadina.”

(9) “Botanically a fruit, for culinary purposes it is what?”

“A vegetable.”

(10) “Many weigh in excess of one pound and are the largest varieties of cultivated tomatoes?”

“ Beefsteak tomato.”

(11) “Type of tomatoes that lack a genetic mutation that gives tomatoes an appealing, uniform red color?”

“Heirloom.”

(12) “The tomato originated from what South American mountain range?”

“Andes.”

(13) “Tomato is a member of the solanaceae family of flowering plants, also known as?”                

“Nightshades.”

(14) “The distinct features of this tomato are the characteristic dark green and yellow stripes?”         

“Cherokee Purple tomato.”

“You know sonny, I’m very proud of you. This was a tough quiz. But I have saved this super tough question just in case you got the first fourteen correct. Even I did not know the answer. If you get this one correct, you will be the master and I will be your student. Here we go.

(15) “This now-famous tomato has almost a cult following among seed collectors and tomato connoisseurs. Identify this Russian heirloom tomato that was named in honor of what American opera singer? Now take your time, sonny.”

“Zio mio, I hate to do this to you, as you will always be my master but the answer is Paul Robeson.” 

“I give up! Let’s go get some gelato. But you should come over in the spring anyway so I can teach you to break up dirt clods.” 

-  -  -  -  -  -

Marty

STRIP SCENARISTA ARTURO CASTELLI

Na današnji dan, 26. VI 1947. godine,  rođen je Arturo Castelli, jedan od scenarista Zagora, Mister Noa, a scenaristički je osmislio strip junaka Martin Mysteré. Čestitke!

Hasan al Benna boigrafi

Muhammed al-Banna (Arabic: حسن أحمد عبد الرحمن محمد البنا‎; 14 October 1906 – 12 February 1949), known as Hassan al-Banna (Arabic: حسن البنا‎), was an Egyptian schoolteacher and imam, best known for founding the Muslim Brotherhood, one of the largest and most influential Islamic revivalist organizations.^[3]

Sheikh Hassan Ahmed Abdel Rahman Muhammed al-Banna حسن أحمد عبد الرحمن محمد البنا
Personal
Born	October 14, 1906 Mahmoudiyah, Beheira, Egypt
Died	February 12, 1949 (aged 42) Cairo, Egypt
Religion	Islam
Jurisprudence	Shafi'i
Creed	Ashari
Movement	Modernism[1]
Political party	Muslim Brotherhood
Alma mater	Dar al-Ulum
Muslim leader
Influenced by Rashid Rida[2],Shaykh Izz al-Din al-Qassam[citation needed] , Sayyid Jamal al-Din al-Afghani,
Influenced Muslim Brotherhood, Sayyid Qutb, Taqi al-Din al-Nabhani, Amin al-Husseini, Malcolm X[citation needed], Ahmed Yassin
Founder and 1st General Guide of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood
In office 1928–1949
Preceded by	(Position established)
Succeeded by	Hassan al-Hudaybi and Said Ramadan

Al-Banna's writings marked a watershed in Islamic intellectual history by presenting a modern ideology based on Islam.^[4] Al-Banna considered Islam to be a comprehensive system of life, with the Quran as the only acceptable constitution.^[5] He called for Islamization of the state, the economy, and society.^[4] He declared that establishing a just society required development of institutions and progressive taxation, and elaborated an Islamic fiscal theory where zakat would be reserved for social expenditure in order to reduce inequality.^[5][4] Al-Banna's ideology involved criticism of Western materialism, British imperialism, and the traditionalism of the Egyptian ulema.^[6] He appealed to Egyptian and pan-Arab patriotism but rejected Arab nationalism and regarded all Muslims as members of a single nation-community.^[5][4][6]

The Muslim Brotherhood advocated gradualist moral reform and had no plans for a violent takeover of power.^[7] The "Jihad of the spirit"―self-initiated productive work aimed at bettering the conditions of the Islamic community―was a significant part of their ideology.^[4] Under al-Banna's leadership, the organization embarked on a wide-ranging campaign of social engagement; they especially emphasized public health improvements.^[6] Following the abolition of the caliphate in 1924, al-Banna called on Muslims to prepare for armed struggle against colonial rule; he warned Muslims against the "widespread belief" that "jihad of the heart" was more important than "jihad of the sword".^[7] He allowed the formation of a secret military wing within the Muslim Brotherhood, which took part in the Arab-Israeli conflict.^[6] Al-Banna generally encouraged Egyptians to abandon Western customs; he argued that the state should enforce Islamic public morality through censorship and application of hudud corporal punishment.^[4] Nonetheless, his thought was open to Western ideas and some of his writings quote European authors instead of Islamic sources.^[4]

Al-Banna was assassinated by the Egyptian secret police in 1949.^[5] His son-in-law Said Ramadan emerged as a major leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in the 1950s.

Dinosaurs

Main article: Dinosaur size Scale diagram comparing the average human to the largest known dinosaurs in five major clades: Sauropoda (Argentinosaurus huinculensis), Ornithopoda (Shantungosaurus giganteus), Theropoda (Spinosaurus aegyptiacus), Thyreophora (Stegosaurus armatus) and Marginocephalia (Triceratops prorsus) Current evidence suggests that dinosaur average size varied through the Triassic, early Jurassic, late Jurassic and Cretaceous periods.[34] Predatory theropod dinosaurs, which occupied most terrestrial carnivore niches during the Mesozoic, most often fall into the 100 to 1000 kilogram (220 to 2200 lb) category when sorted by estimated weight into categories based on order of magnitude, whereas recent predatory carnivoran mammals peak in the 10 to 100 kilogram (22 to 220 lb) category.[57] The mode of Mesozoic dinosaur body masses is between one and ten metric tonnes.[58] This contrasts sharply with the size of Cenozoic mammals, estimated by the National Museum of Natural History as about 2 to 5 kilograms (5 to 10 lb).[59] The sauropods were the largest and heaviest dinosaurs. For much of the dinosaur era, the smallest sauropods were larger than anything else in their habitat, and the largest were an order of magnitude more massive than anything else that has since walked the Earth. Giant prehistoric mammals such as Paraceratherium (the largest land mammal ever) were dwarfed by the giant sauropods, and only modern whales approach or surpass them in size.[60] There are several proposed advantages for the large size of sauropods, including protection from predation, reduction of energy use, and longevity, but it may be that the most important advantage was dietary. Large animals are more efficient at digestion than small animals, because food spends more time in their digestive systems. This also permits them to subsist on food with lower nutritive value than smaller animals. Sauropod remains are mostly found in rock formations interpreted as dry or seasonally dry, and the ability to eat large quantities of low-nutrient browse would have been advantageous in such environments.[8] Largest and smallest Scientists will probably never be certain of the largest and smallest dinosaurs to have ever existed. This is because only a tiny percentage of animals ever fossilize, and most of these remain buried in the earth. Few of the specimens that are recovered are complete skeletons, and impressions of skin and other soft tissues are rare. Rebuilding a complete skeleton by comparing the size and morphology of bones to those of similar, better-known species is an inexact art, and reconstructing the muscles and other organs of the living animal is, at best, a process of educated guesswork.[61] Comparative size of Giraffatitan to the average human The tallest and heaviest dinosaur known from good skeletons is Giraffatitan brancai (previously classified as a species of Brachiosaurus). Its remains were discovered in Tanzania between 1907 and 1912. Bones from several similar-sized individuals were incorporated into the skeleton now mounted and on display at the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin;[62] this mount is 12 meters (39 ft) tall and 21.8–22.5 meters (72–74 ft) long,[63][64] and would have belonged to an animal that weighed between 30000 and 60000 kilograms (70000 and 130000 lb). The longest complete dinosaur is the 27-meter (89 ft) long Diplodocus, which was discovered in Wyoming in the United States and displayed in Pittsburgh's Carnegie Natural History Museum in 1907.[65] Comparative size of Eoraptor to the average human There were larger dinosaurs, but knowledge of them is based entirely on a small number of fragmentary fossils. Most of the largest herbivorous specimens on record were all discovered in the 1970s or later, and include the massive Argentinosaurus, which may have weighed 80000 to 100000 kilograms (90 to 110 short tons); some of the longest were the 33.5 meters (110 ft) long Diplodocus hallorum[8] (formerly Seismosaurus) and the 33 meters (108 ft) long Supersaurus;[66] and the tallest, the 18 meters (59 ft) tall Sauroposeidon, which could have reached a sixth-floor window. The heaviest and longest of them all may have been Amphicoelias fragillimus, known only from a now lost partial vertebral neural arch described in 1878. Extrapolating from the illustration of this bone, the animal may have been 58 meters (190 ft) long and weighed over 120000 kg (260000 lb).[8] The largest known carnivorous dinosaur was Spinosaurus, reaching a length of 16 to 18 meters (52 to 60 ft), and weighing in at 8150 kg (18000 lb).[67] Other large carnivorous theropods included Giganotosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus and Tyrannosaurus.[68] Therizinosaurus and Deinocheirus were among the tallest of the theropods. The smallest dinosaur known is the bee hummingbird,[69] with length of only 5 cm (2 in) and mass of around 1.8 g (0.06 oz).[70] Not including birds (Avialae), the smallest known dinosaurs were about the size of pigeons.[71] The smallest non-avialan dinosaurs were those theropods most closely related to birds. Anchiornis huxleyi, for example, had a total skeletal length of under 35 centimeters (1.1 ft).[71][72] A. huxleyi is currently the smallest non-avialan dinosaur described from an adult specimen, with an estimated weight of 110 grams.[72] The smallest herbivorous non-avialan dinosaurs included Microceratus and Wannanosaurus, at about 60 cm (2.0 ft) long each.[2][73]

Dracula

Dracula is an 1897 Gothic horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. It introduced the character of Count Dracula and established many conventions of subsequent vampire fantasy.[1]

The novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to move from Transylvania to England so that he may find new blood and spread the undead curse, and of the battle between Dracula and a small group of people led by Professor Abraham Van Helsing. Dracula has been assigned to many literary genres including vampire literature, horror fiction, gothic fiction, and invasion literature. The novel has spawned numerous theatrical, film, and television interpretations. Dracula1st.jpeg The cover of the first edition Author Bram Stoker Country United Kingdom Language English Genre Horror, Gothic Publisher Archibald Constable and Company (UK) Publication date 26 May 1897 Pages 418 OCLC 1447002 Dracula has been assigned to many literary genres including vampire literature, horror fiction, gothic fiction, and invasion literature. The novel has spawned numerous theatrical, film, and television interpretations. Plot Stoker's handwritten notes on the characters in the novel The story is told in an epistolary format, as a series of letters, diary entries, newspaper articles, and ships' log entries, whose narrators are the novel's protagonists, and occasionally supplemented with newspaper clippings relating events not directly witnessed. The events portrayed in the novel take place chronologically and largely in England and Transylvania within the same year between 3 May and 6 November. A short note at the end of the final chapter is written 7 years after the events outlined in the novel. The tale begins with Jonathan Harker, a newly qualified English solicitor, visiting Count Dracula at his castle in the Carpathian Mountains on the border of Transylvania, Bukovina, and Moldavia, to provide legal support for a real estate transaction overseen by Harker's employer, Mr Peter Hawkins of Exeter. Initially impressed by Dracula's gracious manners, Harker soon realizes that he is Dracula's prisoner. Wandering the Count's castle against Dracula's admonition, Harker encounters three vampire sisters, from whom he is rescued by Dracula. Harker soon realizes that Dracula himself is also a vampire. After the preparations are made, Dracula leaves Transylvania and abandons Harker to the sisters. Harker barely escapes from the castle with his life. Dracula boards a Russian ship, the Demeter, taking with him boxes of Transylvanian soil, which he requires in order to regain his strength. The ship weighs anchor at Varna and eventually runs aground on the shores of Whitby in north-east England. The captain's log narrates the gradual disappearance of the entire crew, until the captain alone remained, himself bound to the helm to maintain course. An animal resembling "a large dog" is seen leaping ashore. It is later learned that Dracula successfully purchased multiple estates under the alias 'Count De Ville' throughout London and devised to distribute the boxes to each of them utilizing transportation services as well as moving them himself. He does this to secure for himself lairs and the boxes of earth would be used as his graves which would grant safety and rest during times of feeding and replenishing his strength. Harker's fiancée, Mina Murray, is staying with her friend Lucy Westenra, who is holidaying in Whitby. Lucy receives three marriage proposals from Dr. John Seward, Quincey Morris, and Arthur Holmwood (the son of Lord Godalming who later succeeds to the title himself[2]). Lucy accepts Holmwood's proposal while turning down Seward and Morris, but all remain friends. Dracula communicates with Seward's patient, Renfield, an insane man who wishes to consume insects, spiders, birds, and rats to absorb their life force. Renfield is able to detect Dracula's presence and supplies clues accordingly. Soon Dracula is indirectly shown to be stalking Lucy. As time passes she begins to suffer from episodes of sleepwalking and dementia, as witnessed by Mina. When Lucy begins to waste away suspiciously, Seward invites his old teacher, Abraham Van Helsing, who immediately determines the true cause of Lucy's condition. He refuses to disclose it but diagnoses her with acute blood-loss. Van Helsing prescribes numerous blood transfusions to which he, Seward, Quincey, and Arthur all contribute over time. Van Helsing also prescribes garlic flowers to be placed throughout her room and weaves a necklace of withered garlic blossoms for her to wear. However she continues to waste away – appearing to lose blood every night. Van Helsing attempts to protect Lucy with garlic but fate thwarts him each night, whether Lucy's mother removes the garlic from her room, or Lucy herself does so in her restless sleep. While both doctors are absent, Lucy and her mother are attacked by a wolf and Mrs Westenra, who has a heart condition, dies of fright. The doctors find two small puncture marks about Lucy's neck, which Dr Seward is at a loss to understand. After Lucy also dies, Van Helsing places a golden crucifix over her mouth, ostensibly to delay or prevent Lucy's vampiric conversion. Fate conspires against him again when Van Helsing finds the crucifix in the possession of one of the servants who stole it off Lucy's corpse. Following Lucy's death and burial, the newspapers report children being stalked in the night by a "bloofer lady" (i.e., "beautiful lady").[3] Van Helsing, knowing Lucy has become a vampire, confides in Arthur, Seward, and Morris. The suitors and Van Helsing track her down and, after a confrontation with her, stake her heart, behead her, and fill her mouth with garlic. Around the same time, Jonathan Harker arrives from Budapest, where Mina marries him after his escape, and he and Mina join the campaign against Dracula. The vampire hunters stay at Dr. Seward's residence, holding nightly meetings and providing reports based on each of their various tasks. Mina discovers that each of their journals and letters collectively contain clues through which they can track Dracula down. She tasks herself with collecting them, researching newspaper clippings, fitting the most relevant entries into chronological order and typing out copies to distribute to each of the party which they are to study. Jonathan Harker tracks down the shipments of boxed graves and the estates which Dracula has purchased in order to store them. Van Helsing conducts research along with Dr. Seward to analyze the behaviour of their patient Renfield who they learn is directly influenced by Dracula. They also research historical events, folklore, and superstitions from various cultures to understand Dracula's powers and weaknesses. Van Helsing also establishes a criminal profile on Dracula in order to better understand his actions and predict his movements. Arthur Holmwood's fortune assists in funding the entire operation. As they discover the various properties Dracula had purchased, the male protagonists team up to raid each property and are several times confronted by Dracula. Locating each of the boxed graves scattered throughout London, they pry them open to place and seal wafers of sacramental bread within. This act renders the boxes of earth completely useless to Dracula as he is unable to open, enter or further transport them. After Dracula learns of the group's plot against him, he attacks Mina on three occasions, and feeds Mina his own blood to control her. This curses Mina with vampirism and changes her but does not completely turn her into a vampire. Van Helsing attempts to bless Mina through prayer and by placing a wafer of sacrament against her forehead, but it burns her upon contact leaving a wretched scar. Under this curse, Mina oscillates from consciousness to a semi-trance during which she perceives Dracula's surroundings and actions. Van Helsing is able to use hypnotism twice a day, at dawn and at sunset, to put her into this trance to further track Dracula's movements. Mina, afraid of Dracula's link with her, urges the team not to tell her their plans out of fear that Dracula will be listening. After the protagonists discover and sterilize 49 boxes found throughout his lairs in London, they learn that Dracula has fled with the missing 50th box back to his castle in Transylvania. They pursue him under the guidance of Mina. They split up into teams once they reach Europe; Van Helsing and Mina go to Dracula's castle, while the others attempt to ambush the boat Dracula is using to reach his home. Van Helsing raids the castle and destroys the vampire sisters. Upon discovering Dracula being transported by Gypsies, the three teams converge and attack the caravan carrying Dracula in the 50th box of earth. After dispatching many Gypsies who were sworn to protect the Count, Harker shears Dracula through the throat with a kukri knife, while the mortally wounded Quincey stabs the Count in the heart with a Bowie knife. Dracula crumbles to dust, and Mina is freed from her curse of vampirism, as the scar on her forehead disappears. Soon after, Quincey dies from his wounds. The book closes with a note left by Jonathan Harker seven years after the events of the novel, detailing his married life with Mina and the birth of their son, whom they name after all four members of the party, but address as Quincey. Young Quincey is depicted sitting on the knee of Van Helsing as they recount their adventure. Seward and Arthur have each gotten married.

Dracula

Dracula is an 1897 Gothic horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. It introduced the character of Count Dracula and established many conventions of subsequent vampire fantasy.[1] The novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to move from Transylvania to England so that he may find new blood and spread the undead curse, and of the battle between Dracula and a small group of people led by Professor Abraham Van Helsing.