The tomato arrived in Spain in the 16th century from Peru and Mexico. For many years, it was treated only as an ornamental plant. It was the Italians who first realised the benefits of using the tomato in cooking. At that time, in the mid 16th century, the fruit was more yellow than red and as small as the cherry tomatoes we are used to today. In true Italian style, they nicknamed the tomato as the "apple of love" or "apple of paradise." The Spanish, meanwhile, chose to adopt the Aztec name tomatl, which means plump.

Only in the 20th century did the tomato as we know it today become widely used in cooking. It is hard to believe now but, back in the 19th century, some culinary types thought that if you didn't cook tomatoes for at least three hours, you would be poisoned. The tomato is a member of the nightshade family after all, so people believed that they could not safely be eaten in their raw, natural state.

These days, tomatoes love Spain and the Spanish love the tomato. The sun and the well drained soil are ideal growing conditions. More than 4 million tonnes of tomatoes are grown in Spain. Some are used for sauces, pulp, and pastes. Others, the beefsteak tomatoes, often turn up in salads. The popular globular tomato has a mild flavour and can be used with salads, vegetables or as a garnish. I particularly enjoy this juicy version of the tomato. The so-called egg tomato is sweet and sour to taste and goes well in soups. Then there are those little cherry tomatoes, to which I confess I am addicted. When relentlessly popping these into my mouth, I tell myself that they are much better for me than biscuits.

Tomatoes are used in a variety of ways when it comes to Spanish cooking. In Catalonia, they make tomato bread (pa amb tomàquet). Down south in Andalucia, the cold tomato soup, Gazpacho, is made using ripe tomatoes and is a popular method of cooling down in summer.

August is often the best month for tomatoes. This is when many Spaniards bottle them as Sofrito; a mixture of stewed tomatoes, onions and garlic that is preserved in jars. It is kept as the base to use for sauces, rice dishes and stews.

Fully ripe tomatoes are easy to skin, but others must first be blanched. Then the tomato is seeded and the flesh diced for use in salads. There are even salads where one tomato is dressed with the juice of another, known as ajotomate.

Very ripe tomatoes have a particularly intense flavour and are highly nutritional, being rich in vitamin C. There is a good reason why oil is almost always used with tomatoes in Spain. It helps the body exploit the benefits of the pro vitamin A that is in the tomato. At breakfast time, you will see many locals cover their toast in tomato and olive oil.

Now, I've always liked the tomato. But the beautiful ones on offer in Spain do not taste like those that my mother used to put in my school lunch box. They are much tastier and juicier. If you enjoy tomatoes, you will love them in Spain. And if you don't like tomatoes, then you have my sympathy!