Trans fat & HFCS in my tomato paste

AlabasterVerve

I've resigned myself to the fact I can't buy any prepared convenience foods without added crap but tomato paste?! Come on...that's an ingredient to me! I don't want to compromise my families health but I damn sure don't want to make tomato paste from scratch either. It's so frustrating.

lyttlewon

Try S&W the only ingredient in their tomato paste is tomatoes.

ShannonMpls

That's ridiculous and part of the reason I like buying stuff at Trader Joe's. Though they are sneaky about things like MSG, there is never HFCS or trans fat in their products.

AlabasterVerve

Thanks for the brand name to look for, lyttlewon. We live in a relatively poor area and organic or healthier alternatives aren't widely available at the local grocery store -- the demand for them is low because of the prices.

We have a Trader Joe's about an hour away so I guess I need to stop being lazy and see if I can find some healthier versions of our pantry staples. I've been meaning to go for awhile now since I saw our tuna fish is canned in soy and vegetable broth. You would think it would cost the food manufactureres less to leave this stuff out. :grumble:

ShannonMpls

We have a Trader Joe's about an hour away so I guess I need to stop being lazy and see if I can find some healthier versions of our pantry staples. I've been meaning to go for awhile now since I saw our tuna fish is canned in soy and vegetable broth. You would think it would cost the food manufactureres less to leave this stuff out. :grumble:

I really like stocking up on staples at Trader Joe's. I get organic low sodium broth, tomato paste, tuna (no salt added! hard to find that elsewhere), nuts, and nut butters there. They also have a really good organic no-salt added marinara sauce for a great price. I do add salt to it, but it ends up MUCH less sodium than the regular jarred sauces.

a_mandolin_

One suggestion if you do want to make your own (though I know the OP said she didn't, but somebody might want to!), if you have a dehydrator, you can very easily make your own tomato paste or sauce for use at any time. It may be time consuming at first, but you can make large batches.

Here is a recipe for tomato leathers, which you can then grind into a powder and add water when you want a tomato paste, as needed. You can freeze the leathers too, to have plenty to make at any other time.

http://www.nesco.com/recipes/?category[]=300&submit=recipe&uid=361f86308e94

lyttlewon

I don't shop at Trader Joes but Costco sells organic S&W tomato products, which is where I buy my tomato paste. It is a fairly popular brand so hopefully you can find something comparable. Hunt's isn't bad either but they season theirs, which I do not prefer.

Hunt's ingredients : Tomato Paste, Salt, Spices, Natural Flavors, Citric Acid.

MrsBully4

You can buy crushed tomatoes instead. The ingredients usually read: Tomatoes

lyttlewon

You can buy crushed tomatoes instead. The ingredients usually read: Tomatoes

There is a huge difference between tomato paste and crushed tomatoes, both in cooking function and flavor.

lyttlewon

One suggestion if you do want to make your own (though I know the OP said she didn't, but somebody might want to!), if you have a dehydrator, you can very easily make your own tomato paste or sauce for use at any time. It may be time consuming at first, but you can make large batches.

Here is a recipe for tomato leathers, which you can then grind into a powder and add water when you want a tomato paste, as needed. You can freeze the leathers too, to have plenty to make at any other time.

http://www.nesco.com/recipes/?category[]=300&submit=recipe&uid=361f86308e94

My mom gives me a gigantic bag of these out of her garden every year. They are also excellent in recipes that call for sundried tomatoes.

AlabasterVerve

I went to my regular store today and found the Hunt's you mentioned and Tuttorosso tomato paste without hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup. The Tuttorosso only had tomatoes and citric acid listed for ingredients so I picked up some cans of those. Thanks again.

P.S.
Delicious pizza crust and a spicy pizza sauce recipe that I used to make pepperoni pizza tonight. Low carb and less than 600 calories for half the pizza and a large salad. We loved them and will definitely be making these again:

http://yourlighterside.com/easy-pizza-crust/

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/exquisite-pizza-sauce/
(I left out the honey - by itself the sauce could definitely use the sweetness but with the cheese and pizza "crust" it was great without it.)