Tabouli Salad is a great way to use colorful antioxidant rich fresh produce. Sunripened tomatoes, cool cukes, sensuous spearmint, and hip hempseed as an alternative to the gluten containing bulgur wheat that is traditionally used. Hemp can provide omega 3’s, protein and vitamin E. The hempseed oil adds a lovely richness that might even win over olive oil aficionados. There is no THC in the hempseed or oil. Try this Mediterranean treat that can be a meal in itself!

Tabouli Salad
The bulghur in most tabouli salad is made of the common gluten containing allergen, wheat. This one’s gluten free, wheat free and enzyme rich, of course!)

1 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup chopped fresh spearmint
2 tomatoes, chopped
1 cucumber, chopped
Juice of 1 lemon juice
1 cup hempseed
1/4 cup hempseed oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
Put them all together in a big bowl and mix them all about! Chill before serving for 1/2 hour. (Serves 4-6)

For those of you that have never tried Hempseed (Cannabis sativa), it is a member of the Cannabaceae (Hemp) Family and one of the oldest cultivated plants on the planet. Hempseed is really akin to a nutrient dense grain, though it contains no gluten and is not in the Poaceae (Grass) Family that grains like wheat, rye, barley, spelt and kamut fall into. Hempseeds can be useful in special diets where people have intolerances to dairy, soy, corn and gluten, as it is easily tolerated and digestible.

Hempseed’s flavor is sweet and mild and somewhere between a sunflower seed and pine nut.

Hempseed is a rich source of vegetable protein. Most find it easy to digest and unlikely to cause allergic reactions and is not from genetically modified plants, which is common with soy and corn.

(For more delicious recipes please visit Nutiva Kitchen or check out my book The HempNut Health and Cookbook, co-authored with Richard Rose and Christina Pirello.)

Brigitte Mars is an herbalist and nutritional consultant with over forty years experience. She is the author of Beauty by Nature, Rawsome!, The Sexual Herbal, Addiction Free Naturally, Healing Herbal Teas, The Desktop Guide to Herbal Medicine, and co-author of The Country Almanac of Home Remedies, and The Hemp Nut Health and Cookbook. Brigitte has had a radio show on KGNU called Naturally for over twenty years. She is a professional member of The American Herbalist Guild. Ms. Mars teaches at Naropa University, Boulder College of Massage, Omega Institute, Kripalu, and Bauman College of Holistic Nutrition and Culinary Arts. Brigitte is a blogger for The Huffington Post and Care2.
Brigitte has been happily married for thirty years, to human design analyst, Tom Pfeiffer with whom she teaches raw food workshops. They are the parents of Sunflower Mars, and actress and yogini, Rainbeau Mars (www.rainbeaumars.com).
www.brigittemars.com, 303 442-4967, [email protected]