We are located in Odessa, FL, an agricultural area close to some of the country's largest tomato growing communities; like Ruskin, FL. In an effort to connect with our neighbors and fellow small businesses we frequently participate in local fairs and trade shows.
This festival celebrated agricultural traditions with fun activities like a Farmer's Market, Ruskin Tomato King & Queen, Antique Tractor Show, bluegrass and country music, plant show and sale, gardening workshops and more. We look forward to attending more Florida based events and would love to hear of any upcoming community events relating to the content of our site: please contact us!
The vision for TomatoMilling.com resulted out of a desire to combine the economical do-it-yourself approach with the simple pleasures that result from home cooked nutritious meals. With everyone’s busy on-the-go lifestyle convenience sometimes over takes tradition, but we believe there are ways to uphold the customs of the past. It is possible to have quick results while incorporating the all important fresh food lifestyle.
Canning fruits and vegetables has been part of many cultures. You need only visit our recipes page to see the diverse influences. In fact, several of our tomato milling machines are Italy’s finest: Fabio Leonardi. The Fabio Leonardi Bologna (FLB) company was founded in 1917 with object of being the first producer of tomato milling machines in the world. TomatoMilling.com is proud to carry this quality product line.
Believing in heritage is about remembering where we’ve come from but also upholding traditions to honor those we love. Here at TomatoMilling.com we want to do our part in this goal, because we ought to save these traditions for the next generation.
The TomatoMilling.com staff that supports and answers your questions comes from generations of experienced tomato growing and canning family members. Below you will find a profile of some of these family members and influences.
Mildred Sulkowski
Pictured is a young Mildred Sulkowski working in a fresh produce and grocery market in New York. Eventually, she moved to northern New Jersey to keep a beautiful house complete with gardens of vegetables and flowers. Ripe tomatoes and cold cut platters were a weekend lunch staple. Her dinning room, adorned with decorations collected through a rich history of being an Italian American, was the center of many large family dinners. She learned cooking and canning from her Italian mother, tending gardens and working in places like the photo above. She continues to pass down this knowledge, care, the sprit of self-dependence, and hard work to her family (including the family here at TomatoMilling.com).
"Nana" Russo
Originally from Italy, "Nana" came to America through Ellis Island with thousands of other Italians. She held on to those old world traditions of gardening, canning, and cooking and implemented them here in the US. In her younger days, she helped to run a farm in rural New York furthering her knowledge of produce production. She then settled in northern New Jersey where she is pictured above with her granddaughter in front of her vegetable garden. Nana’s cellar was filled with shelves of preserves and canned vegetables to use in her home cooking throughout the harsh New Jersey winter months. To this day her family still makes Nana’s original recipes, fondly remembering when we sat around her table and had a fresh pizza or lasagna; cooked using the freshest of ingredients - a tradition that TomatoMilling.com has in common with our tomato milling customers.
Carl Raab
Carl knows well the importance of being a strong independent individual. Growing up with his family in Union City he learned quickly that self-reliance is the cornerstone of having a fulfilling life. Although through the years he has moved from New Jersey and later on to Georgia; one thing he has brought with him through this journey is his passion for gardening fresh vegetables. Pictured above, this photo was recently taken at his home with a fresh grown tomato in hand (not the first gardening success). His son, a TomatoMilling.com staffer, recalls the days in New Jersey when Carl built a step style, four-level garden by the side of the house. His son, too young to truly appreciate the fresh vegetables at the time, now believes in carrying on these lessons from his father in his own garden. Sharing advice and knowledge with others has always been Carl's much welcomed style and TomatoMilling.com tries to replicate that wisdom and experience with our customers.
