Tomatoes aren’t the first things that come to mind when planning for a holiday dinner, but there are many ways you can use them for a Thanksgiving, Christmas and/or New Year’s feast, whether it is an appetizer or even a cocktail!

Appetizers

You can use tomatoes for your appetizers. Make bruschetta with diced tomatoes, basil and mozzarella on top of some bread. You can also make a dip for people to use with crackers or cut up pieces of bread. You can even just serve tomato slices with ranch or another type of dip. People will love the fresh, light taste. It gets their stomachs ready for all of the traditionally heavier, comfort food about to come down.

Side Dishes

You can use tomatoes in many holiday side dishes. You can put them into rice, add them to mashed potatoes, or chop some up and throw them into corn. Even a simple dish like slow-roasted tomatoes can make for a delicious side dish. Whether it is a completely new dish or a twist on a comfort classic, tomatoes can be a welcomed addition to your table.

Desserts

Hard as it may seem, tomatoes can be used in many different types of desserts. You can make ice cream with them in it. You can also make tomato-based sauces to drizzle on top of pastries. Since tomatoes are sweet, they are perfect for desserts. Some people serve tomato pies instead of traditional pecan and pumpkin pies just because they are different and healthier.

Cocktails

Adult beverages can be made out of tomatoes too, especially tomato juice. Most people know about a Bloody Mary, but there are other drinks you can use tomato juice in to give the drink a thicker, sweeter taste. Experiment with it at your next holiday party, or perhaps the night before, so you can figure out what works and what doesn’t! You don’t want to serve your guests a cocktail that doesn’t turn out as good as you hoped.

Healthy Drinks

Tomato juice is highly nutritious and can be combined with other, non-alcoholic, options, even just club soda, to offer a healthier alternative to sodas for kids and adults alike.
As you can see, there are many ways to use tomatoes during the holidays. Just because people probably didn’t use them for the first Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s dinners, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use them now.