Dr. Tracy's Blog

Enjoy the summer's bounty with this easy dairy-free pesto. Use as a spread on sandwiches or as a sauce for pasta. Dairy Free Pesto ¼ cup pistachios or pine nuts two cloves of garlic one large bunch of basil, about 3 cups of leaves and small stems - if you do not have enough basil you can combine the basil you have with baby spinach leaves or parsley 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast ¼ teaspoon sea salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil, flax oil or melted coconut oil In a food processor pulse the garlic and nuts until chopped. Add the basil one cup at a time and pulse until well combined. Then add the nutritional yeast, sea salt and black pepper, pulsing the food processor to combine. With the food processor running slowly add the oil. You may need to scrape down the sides of the food processor periodically, process until well combined. One of my favorite ways to enjoy pesto in the summer is to mix sauteed kale, red onion, summer squash

Are you sick of hummus? I don't know about you, but we are always on the go during the summer months traveling to the beach or visiting relatives. And for a vegan, that means always bringing plenty of snacks such as hummus and carrots. So by the time August rolls around I'm pretty bored with hummus and go looking for some other high-protein snacks. So of you too are bored with hummus, try this Lentil Walnut Dip inspired by the New York City plant-based restaurant, Angelica Kitchen , which I had the pleasure of visiting in 2007. Lentil Walnut Dip 1 cup walnuts 1 ½ cups cooked black beluga lentils* 2 tablespoons water 1 tablespoon low sodium tamari or coconut aminos 1 teaspoon dried thyme ¼ teaspoon onion powder sea salt and pepper to taste In a skillet toast the walnuts over medium heat until fragrant, a few minutes. Let the walnuts cool and then place them in a food processor and process until they are finely ground. Add all the remaining ingredients a