In 2022 my husband, Stephen,  and I went on a 3-week wellness retreat in hopes of finding non-medical ways to help manage his arthritis. After the second week of an all-vegan diet, his hands had so much less inflammation his wedding band fell off! It was then I was convinced we needed to continue this lifestyle and commit to one year of veganism. As a complete foodie, this was a considerable food challenge for me. I started making a lot of different pesto sauces over pasta or zucchini noodles. One of my favorite pairings is Pistachio Pesto + Poggio Grande Tagete, a superb blend of Marsanne and Rousanne grapes from the Val d’Orcia region of Tuscany.

Feel free to add Parmesan or Pecorino cheese to this pesto to make it vegetarian. Or sometimes I use Violife Plant-Based Parmesan or a sprinkle of nutritional yeast.