Tomato Festival Sydney 2015

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Sat 14 Feb 2015 - Sun 15 Feb 2015

Unlike the festival in Spain that is about smashing and throwing tomatoes in a huge food fight, the Tomato Festival in Sydney is all about savouring this humble fruit and the many ways to enjoy it.



We devour tomatoes on a regular basis in salads and salsas, soups and stews, juices and sauces, on pizzas and pasta, and it's time to celebrate this versatility in some free and ticketed events at the Royal Botanic Gardens. The Band Lawn will see a buzz of activity catering for adults and children with cherry tomato and spoon races, hands-on pizza making, themed guided walks, a pop up cafe and bar.

There's lots of local and organic produce for sale. Not just tomatoes but a showcase of cheeses, condiments, vegetables that accompany tomatoes, and more. Masterclasses, workshops and talks abound in the Maiden Theatre and Moore Room on topics such as companion planting, fermentation and pickling, and growing tips for heirloom varieties. This is the place to learn all there is to know about the tomato with free taste tests of over 20 varieties.

If you know your tomatoes, test your palate and be a judge in one of the competitions or maybe enter a competition yourself. There's a Tomato Passata Sauce Challenge, a Tomato Relish/Chutney Challenge and a 'Best in Show' Home-Grown Tomatoes Competition. Glory to be had and prizes to be won.

Just want a nice tomato-based meal? No problem, there is a 4 course degustation lunch at the Botanic Gardens Restaurant to get your teeth into for only $69 per person. Head chef Todd Hunt will bring his talents to you in this open air dining experience.

Get cooking, bring your passion with you, take your taste buds on a delicious journey and be surprised by the many ways tomatoes play a role in our lives.

Some tomato facts:

* they originated in the South American Andes near Peru and not in Italy
* it is classed as a fruit and not a vegetable because it has seeds and grows from a flowering plant
* China is the largest producer of tomatoes around the world
* tomatoes can come in pink, purple, brown and black varieties with more than 7500 varieties across the globe
* rich in antioxidant Lycopene which is good for the heart and effective against certain cancers
* it is a cousin of the potato, the eggplant and the red pepper
* the French named it the apple of love, the Germans call it the apple of paradise and the scientific name translates to wolf peach


#child_friendly
#competitions
#festivals
#food_wine
#outdoor
#sydney
#city
#workshops
#february
!date 14/02/2015 -- 15/02/2015
%wnsydney