Product Feature: Tomato Powder and Tomato Basil Bread Recipe

Today, I'm highlighting another THRIVE Food from the June Specials.... THRIVE Tomato Powder.

THRIVE Tomato Powder has an Opened Shelf Life of 18 months and has ONE ingredient - tomatoes!  The Unopened Shelf Life is 8 years.

Using the instructions from the can, to make 6 oz Tomato Paste, mix 1/4 c of THRIVE Tomato Powder wtih 1/2 c water.  Heather Lorimor of Cooking With My Food Storage recommends a 1 to 1 ratio of tomato powder to water to make tomato paste, and 1 to 2 for tomato sauce. Heather also recommends adding 2 T of sugar to sweeten it up a bit.  You can check out her recommendations on her Cupboard Door Food Storage Reference Chart.

In addition to using it as a powder (like when adding it to water or bouillon to create a soup base), you can turn the tomato powder into a basic tomato sauce or tomato paste.  From there, you can make your favorite pizza sauce recipe, enchilada sauce or homemade spaghetti sauce.  Here's a recipe for Taco Soup from Shelf Reliance, using THRIVE Tomato Powder.  And I found this recipe for homemade ketchup that I'd like to try using the Tomato Powder.

Tomato Powder was one of my very first Shelf Reliance orders for two reasons.  First, my upline sponsor had made a Beef Vegetable Soup with the THRIVE Tomato Powder at the first Shelf Reliance Tasting Party I attended and it was amazing.  Princess Naked Toes went to the party with me and she still talks about that soup almost a year later.  But that Consultant, my upline, did NOT use a recipe!  I'm still trying to duplicate her soup and have it taste as good as she made.  When I do, or she finally writes down what she does (hint hint), I will share with you!

The second reason is this Tomato Basil Bread recipe from Stolen Moments Cooking.  The recipe calls for 2 T of tomato paste.  Even the small can of tomato paste has quite a few more Tablespoons than 2.  So I either make several loaves or I end up throwing away the rest of the can.  Using the Tomato Powder, I use 2 1/2 t tomato powder and 5 t water to make 2 T tomato paste for this delicious bread recipe!

Let's compare the numbers.  A small 6 oz can of tomato paste has 10 Tablespoons in it.  The pantry can contains 56 T.  For the Tomato Basil Bread recipe, I use 2 1/2 teaspoons.  I can make 67 loaves from one pantry can.  Therefore at the consultant website price of  $12.79, it costs me 19¢ in tomato powder per loaf.  That's significantly less than buying a can of tomato paste.  If I buy my tomato powder in the #10 can, the price of the tomato powder is even less per serving or per loaf.  And as a Q customer, the price is even better.

Currently Hy-Vee shows the price of Hunt's Tomato Paste 6 oz can as 68¢, which is 6.8¢ per Tablespoon, so cheaper per Tablespoon.  BUT when you add in that I end up throwing away the rest of the can because I don't use it and it goes bad, it costs me 68¢ in tomato paste per loaf, I'm saving 49¢ per loaf of bread.  Even if I buy the store brand at 29¢, I'm saving 10¢ per loaf.

I LOVE being able to use just what I need, instead of buying extra of something and wasting it.  I also love knowing that I always have the items I need in my home store.

For the month of June 2012, THRIVE Tomato Powder is on special.  A #10 can is $28.19 to Q Customers and $29.39 on I'm THRIVing!'s website.  Contact me to find out how you can become a Q Customer or to get the monthly special prices on the other sizes available (Pouch, Pantry Can, Case of #10s, or Pantry-10 Pack).   So continuing our comparison, buying the #10 can on the June special, it will cost 14¢ in tomato powder to make the tomato basil bread.

Here's my bread machine adaptation of the recipe from Stolen Moments Cooking:

Tomato Basil Bread for Bread Machine

• 3/4 c. warm water
•  1 T. olive oil
• 2 T. tomato paste (2 1/2 t THRIVE Tomato Powder, plus 5 t water)
• 2 1/4 – 2 1/2 c. flour (I use 1/2 cup whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup old fashioned oats, and the rest white flour)
• 2 t. dried basil, oregano, or Italian seasoning
• 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 T. sugar
• 1 t. salt
• 1/8 – 1/4 t. crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 pkg. active dry yeast (or 2 1/4 t. yeast)

Add liquid ingredients to bread machine pan.  Add flour, herbs, parmesan, sugar, salt and red pepper flakes on top.  Create a well in dry ingredients and add yeast.  Use 1 lb loaf setting for bread machine.

The Food Money Pit

Source: DeseretNews

This article in the DeseretNews emphasizes one of the reasons I use THRIVE Foods instead of fresh for certain foods.  "The food money pit How food waste costs thousands and how to stop it"

"American households spent an average of $6,129 on food in 2010 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. If Jones' figure of 14 percent waste is correct, that is about $858 per year or about $71 a month wasted on food thrown out. Some food waste experts say the food waste figure is as high as 25 percent or about $1,532 a year."

I did the math and discovered we're closer to that avg spent on food than I thought.  And I probably use to throw away that much in food per year.  Isn't that disgusting?!  Goes back to one of my favorite phrases I've heard through Shelf Reliance - the most expensive food is the food you throw away!

And I'm working on implementing their suggestions (and have been).  But I found an additional solution they didn't mention - replacing those foods I tend to throw away with THRIVE Freeze Dried Foods.  I've stopped throwing away Yogurt now that I've replaced it with Yogurt Bites - Strawberry and Pomegranate are our favorites.  And no more half used green bell peppers either!

So instead of throwing away food, take that money you would have wasted and start investing in THRIVE foods with a monthly Q.  By focusing on those foods you tend to throw away, you'll be saving AND having those nutritious foods always available!  And with a monthly Q budget of $100 or more, you receive the Platinum Q Club membership for free (a $79.99 value) and you'll earn reward points for every dollar you spend in your Q that you can redeem for free product!

What a Waste!

Please tell me I'm not the only one who does this!  Please?!

I go to the grocery store with wonderful intent.  I buy healthy foods fully intending to eat them before they go bad.  And then I choose other foods at snack time.  I don't start dinner in time to cut up and cook the fresh vegetables that I wanted to serve.  And then a few weeks later, I'm reaching in the fridge and discover this...

 I apologize for the out of focus expiration date - it says Apr 9th.  We are officially two weeks past the sell by date.  I opened it well before the sell by date and ate some.  Once.

What about my girls?  I offered it.  They always say Why don't you buy the small containers?  Well I have, but then they eat a few bites and walk away - and it's not resealable.  So I buy the large containers so that I can give them a little and put it back in the fridge.  That's the intent.  Below is reality...

I wonder how much money I've thrown away in yogurt alone.  Okay, I really don't want to know.

Enter the Shelf Reliance solution:

THRIVE Strawberry Yogurt Bites (FD)

Our whole family has decided they are wonderful treats without rehydrating.  Just let it melt on your tongue for just a moment and they are absolutely delicious.  One of these days, I'll have to try actually rehydrating them, maybe right after I make some granola!  In addition to being healthy and delicious, with a 1 yr opened / 25 yr unopened Shelf Life, I am not worried about this yogurt going bad before we eat them up!

The Yogurt Bites also come in

Blueberry

Cherry
Orange
Passionfruit 

Pomegranate

Vanilla

And in case you're wondering what's in them, here's the ingredients from the Strawberry Yogurt Bites:

Ingredients: INGREDIENTS: SUGAR, SKIM MILK YOGURT, YOGURT POWDER, STARCH (TAPIOCA), STRAWBERRY POWDER, NATURAL FLAVOR, BLACK CARROT JUICE CONCENTRATE. *CONTAINS: MILK.