Hope everyone had an amazing Memorial Weekend full of spending time with loved ones and remembering loved ones.  Thinking ahead to summer and cookouts and picnics and maybe you are looking to add some pep and variety to your meals and to your cooking repertoire?  Condiments offer endless ways to spice up vegetables, soups, whole grains, salads, etc.

Salty

• Tamari or Shoyu – Look for traditionally fermented versions. (If you’re gluten-free, look for gluten-free tamari.) These fermented soy-based sauces are rich in umami, which means just a dash adds lots of savory flavor to foods.
• Mustard – Made primarily from mustard seeds, mustard provides tons of flavor as well as aiding digestion (look for brands that don’t add any sugar, unless you’re looking for honey mustard, in which case it will contain honey). Mustard also has anti-fungal, anti-bacterial,
  antiseptic and anti-inflammatory properties.

Sour

• Apple Cider Vinegar – Great on greens, lentils and bean soups, plus it‘s anti-bacterial and anti-fungal. It is essential to use when making
  bone broths to help leach the minerals into the broth from the actual bones. Vinegar also slows the rate of which food empties
  from the stomach, which makes us feel full longer.
• Balsamic Vinegar – A sweeter form of vinegar. Great on roasted vegetables and salads.
• Lemons and Limes – Lemon and lime juice is delicious on vegetables, fish, poultry, greens, soups, etc. And for a refreshing beverage, try squeezing fresh lemon juice into still or sparkling water!

Spicy

• Cayenne, red pepper flakes, hot sesame seed oil and mustard all give food a spicy kick.
• Ketchup and barbecue sauce also offer a tangy/spicy flavor. Look for low-sugar brands or make your own!

Nutty

• Nut Butters – Try organic almond butter that‘s raw and unsweetened. Peanut butter contains a mold inherent to the peanut crop called aflatoxin. It‘s a known carcinogen. If peanut butter is a regular part of your diet, consider switching to almond butter, which has more nutrients than peanut butter. That said, organic peanut butter will have less aflatoxins, particularly if it’s made with Valencia peanuts (such as the Arrowhead Mills brand.) Another great nut butter resource is the better-than-roasted nuts from Radiant Life – they‘re soaked and rinsed and then dried at a low temperature that does not exceed 108F. This preserves the temperature-sensitive enzymes and nutrients.
• Tahini – Made from ground sesame seeds, tahini is loaded with calcium. It’s an indispensible ingredient in hummus and is excellent tossed with salads and vegetables.