You Say 'To-mah-to' and I Say 'To-may-to' Quiz

Answer: west coast of South America

Some theorists also believe that the first wild types of tomatoes were grown in Mexico. There is even the possibility that tomato seeds were spread to Central America via the droppings of pack animals along the trade routes. Ewwwwwww.

Answer: Spain

Some early cultivators of tomatoes knew that the stem and leaves of the plant contained potentially poisonous qualities. The fruit was known to be safe to eat. However, rumor mills being such that they are, many believed the fruit to be poisonous as well, thus hampering the popularity of the tomato. It wasn't until the mid 1700s that tomatoes became widely popular for daily use.

Answer: Thomas Jefferson

Tomatoes are now grown world-wide with the United States being the second highest producer in 2005. In that year, China produced over 31 million tons of tomatoes and the United States produced over 11 million tons.

Answer: beefsteak

Beefsteak tomatoes usually weigh in at one pound or more. The flesh of this variety is generally red, but sometimes is pink. Due to their thin skin, beefsteak tomatoes do not have a long shelf life and are therefore not as commercially-produced as some other varieties.

Answer: ketchup or catsup

Whether it be made by Del Monte, Hunts, Heinz or some other brand, ketchup (my preferred spelling) tastes delicious on many foods. Give me a cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise and ketchup and I will be plenty happy. Oh, and yes, I would like fries with that.

Answer: fruit

According to botanists (and they oughta know), tomatoes develop from the flower of the tomato plant. Thus, the tomato is a fruit, or more accurately, a berry. Since tomatoes are not as sweet as most fruits, folks commonly call them a vegetable strictly for culinary purposes, though.

Answer: Arkansas

Arkansas declared the tomato to be the state fruit as well as the state vegetable. Guess they couldn't decide.

Answer: salmonella

Many illnesses have been reported in multiple states in 1990, 2006 and again in 2008 in America causing stores to remove this popular food from their shelves. Restaurants did not even serve tomato-based dishes during these outbreaks. People who contract the illness from tainted tomatoes often experience severe diarrhea among other symptoms.

Some have even lost their lives. Scary to think our food supply is in such a precarious situation.

Answer: Misery

Kathy Bates earned the Academy Award for her portrayal of Annie Wilkes in 'Misery' in 1990. What a chilling movie it is, too. In 'Fried Green Tomatoes', she played the role of Evelyn Couch who befriends a lonely resident of a nursing home played by the outstanding Jessica Tandy. The movie was nominated for two Academy Awards.

Answer: George and Ira Gershwin

The year 1937 saw many things. Included were the births of my parents and the popularity of this song. Although many people groups align themselves with one pronunciation or the other, generally the British use to-mah-to while the Americans use to-may-to. It's really not worth arguing, let's just all enjoy the special vegetable - oops, make that fruit - whenever we can.

Thanks for sharing this learning experience with me. Blessings!