As Michael Pollen put it “eat food, not too much, mostly plants”
But don’t get me wrong, I am in full support of the paleo movement, however plant based foods should still be the bulk of our diet. When it comes to plant based foods, I am talking about vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds being the majority, legumes being consumed in smaller amounts, and grains being kept to a minimum.
I won’t go into my reasoning to the above statement in this particular post, because this post is about this delicious salad.
At the moment hemp seeds are my favourite salad addition. They are soft, creamy, nutty and add a bit of bulk to your salad. Hemp seeds are a super star in the nutrition world. They are a complete protein, meaning that they contain all of the essential amino acids that the body needs for growth and repair. Hemp is a great sustainable, vegetarian source of omega-3 fatty acids, as well as containing GLA (gamma-linolenic acid) which is a great anti-inflammatory. It’s also high in vitamin C and E, is a source of B vitamins, iron and magnesium and it contains both soluble and insoluble fibre.
Now having said all of these wonderful things about hemp seeds, they are actually considered an illegal food source in Australian and New Zealand. Huh?
Despite the governing boards acknowledging that the hulled hemp seeds that are used as food contain little, if any THC (psycho-active agent), and the THC that is does contain is the non-psycho-active agent. Also, it is impossible to grow cannabis plants from these seeds as they have been hulled (outer shell removed), making it impossible for them to germinate.
Another twist to the saga, despite the ban, you CAN buy hemp seeds in most health food stores in Australia. The catch is that they are labelled for use in skin care products or animal feed.
It is a very interesting battle that is going on between the hemp growers and the government. To read more about it jump on over to hempfoods.com.au.
- • 1 cup baby kale
- • 1/2 cup mixed salad leaves
- • 1/2 avocado sliced
- • 2 Tbs almonds
- • 2 Tbs cashew nuts
- • 2 Tbs hulled hemp seeds
- • 1 Tbs olive oil
- • 1 Tbs coconut oil
- • 1 tsp lemon juice
- Heat the coconut oil over a medium-high heat in a small fry pan.
- Add the almonds and cashew nuts to the fry pan and stir fry them for a few minutes until they brighten in colour.
- Lay the salad leaves and kale out on your serving plate. Top with the sliced avocado.
- Sprinkle the nuts and hemp seeds around the salad.
- Whisk the olive oil and lemon juice together.
- Drizzle the dressing over the salad. Season with a little sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper.