Walking into my grandmother’s farmhouse, she always asked: “Have you eaten?” Before any inquiry about the trip, before hi-how-are-yous, first and foremost, you were fed. It was such a gift, to be nourished that way. She was a healer and meals were her medicine.
I soon realized the world was full of conscious healers like this, many of them women, who understood the medicinal value of the gifts given to us by Mother Earth. Next to them I tilled, planted, cooked, and loved. I humbly think I’ve healed folks with the garden at Corner Brewery and the kitchen we built at Standing Rock, and a few spots in between.
Healing properties
It wasn’t a far jump to start pairing this intentional way of growing and cooking with nature’s most prolific healer, the cannabis plant. The benefits – lessening pain, depleting cancer cells, preventing seizures, and alleviating symptoms of some mental illness – seem endless. The more I researched and experimented, the more I became convinced that a combination of cannabis and real food was a prevailing remedy for all manner of maladies. However, when I first became a MMJ patient, I was concerned that the industry was moving further away from the natural methods of growing, harvesting and infusing. I thought the market needed some… balance. Synthetic and natural. New and ancient. Masculine and feminine presences.
Higher State began in 2015, when my husband and I decided to market the edibles we’d been home cooking. We gently infuse healthy fats (local, organic butter and organic coconut oil) with 100% organically grown cannabis, add some amazing ingredients, and – with gratitude and intention – produce edibles in small, made-to-order batches that are delicious.
My grandmother would have loved them, if she were into that sort of thing.
Back to the dirt
I expected a little resistance from the cannabis community as a woman breaking into the market. With my little bags of granola, I wondered if I’d be taken seriously; could such a small team produce a consistent, professional product? My fears assuaged, the experience has been remarkable. Many people are looking to move from the lab back to the dirt, and local dispensaries are meeting this demand. Our return to roots couldn’t have come at a better time. With a lot of terrifying, counter-progressive policy pulsing through our country, this growing consciousness is a return of our focus to the Mother. Cutting chemicals and fossil fuels, reducing our carbon footprint, and fighting rampant deforestation (hemp, anyone?!) are all coalescing with the marijuana industry in a time when things can often seem the opposite. To be a part of it feels like being on the right side of history.
Higher State Medicinals is a
Ypsilanti-based company. Products can be found in area dispensaries.
A little something for the patients…
- 1 c organic medicated coconut oil
- 2 c organic rolled oats
- 1 c unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1 c slivered almonds
- 3 tbs cane or brown sugar
- 1 c almond butter
- 1 c flax seed
- 1/3 c local honey
- 1/3 c dark chocolate, roughly chopped
- 1 c cranberries
Chocolate Coconut Cranberry Granola
- Preheat oven to 340 degrees
- In a large bowl, mix oats, coconut flakes, sugar, salt and slivered almonds.
- In a small saucepan over low heat, warm coconut oil, almond butter and honey and pour over the dry ingredients. Mix well.
- Spread it evenly over two baking sheets, without crowding
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, stirring halfway. Do not overcook, remove when golden brown
- Let cool a little, then toss with dark chocolate
- Let cool completely, and toss in cranberries
Enjoy responsibly, and keep out of reach
of children and pets!
