April 2009 Newsletter
Greetings from Green Spirit Healthy Living!

You may be wondering what’s up with the photo - if you don’t recognize the plant, it’s hemp. Hemp is a plant that has been grown and used by people around the world for thousands of years. Just has not been legal to grow in the United States for the past one hundred or so years (even though our founding fathers grew it!). I just received an email that the The Industrial Hemp Farming Act of 2009 was recently introduced (on my birthday!) in congress and if passed into law, would remove the restrictions on American farmers to compete in the global market for hemp.
Why does this excite me so much? I LOVE hemp – it’s very nutritious, the seeds provide an easily digestible, high quality protein, contains EFAs (essential fatty acids), and is a great source for vitamin E. I add it to smoothies for extra creaminess, sprinkle it on salads and use hemp oil in salad dressings and other recipes. Some of my favorite clothes are hemp – so soft and feels great against your skin. There are tons of uses for hemp as shown in this youtube video.

I’m very happy that my home state of North Dakota has been issuing licenses to farmers for 2 years now. Hopefully soon we won’t have to be importing it any more! I can’t think of a better time than now – Earth Month- to reintroduce this amazing, sustainable crop that could help provide another green industry in the USA.

This month’s recipe, Pine Nut Parmesan, combines the health benefits of hemp with the great taste of Italian foods! Just enough to whet your appetite for my upcoming Raw Italy Class on April 19th. In this class you will learn how to make a complete Italian Feast – and of course you get to taste it all! Register now as space is limited and the class is filling up.

Other exciting news – I will appear as a “Celebrity Chef” at the Taste of Chicago on July 5th! I was very honored to be asked to participate. Now I’m busy working on my recipe for the demo. If you’re in Chicago, mark your calendar – I’ll be on at noon and would love your support. I’m very excited to share raw foods with an audience that may not have much awareness of the health benefits and great taste of food in it’s natural state. .

Wishing you radiant health!
Linda Szarkowski