Co-owner and chef Mawa McQueen began using CBD in her own wellness routine three years ago to “cool off.”
Courtesy McQueen Hospitality
Mawa’s Hempnola premieres this month and is infused with 20 milligrams of CBD from Silverpeak’s cannabis farm in Basalt.
Courtesy McQueen HospitalityChef Mawa McQueen makes each batch of granola by hand at McQueen Hospitality headquarters in the Aspen business center.
Courtesy McQueen Hospitality
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If you know Mawa McQueen, she lives up to her last name, which governs her local business empire, which includes two restaurants (soon to be four), a lively catering business, and a granola brand.
This month, Mawa’s GrainFreeNola (MGFN) will release a CBD-infused version of its line of healthy snacks in collaboration with Silverpeak, whose cannabis farm is located in Basalt. In February, McQueen, along with her husband and McQueen Hospitality co-owner Daniel McQueen, will also open a new location for The Crepe Shack next to Silverpeak’s Aspen dispensary. Crepe Shack is currently open in Snowmass Base Village and the duo is also scheduled to open at Union Station in downtown Denver in 2022.
Born in Africa, raised in Paris and living in places like England, Spain and Maine, Mawa finally landed in Aspen and brings a global influence to his cuisine. Personally gluten-free, Mawa launched MGFN in January last year so he could enjoy the grain-free granola. Unlike most mass-produced granola made with oats, grains and a lot of sugar, MGFN is also paleo and vegan. Mawa does everything herself, including mixing and sealing each package by hand. It also prioritizes freshness, ensuring that each delivery of nuts is no more than three months old.
“Every continent, culture and tribe around the world tells a story and provides unique nutrients to energize and heal,” Mawa shared. “Our granola brings together these ingredients, obtained with intent and made with love.”
Mawa started using CBD about three years ago in her own wellness routine. He was inspired to instill MGFN to help more people discover its health benefits and “cool off.”
“Trust me, this was an amazing discovery I had just before the pandemic. CBD calms me down during stressful days and helps me talk less! Mawa said laughing.” It’s also very relaxing and makes me sleep better at night “.
Each bag ($ 25) of Mawa’s “Hempnola” comes with 20 milligrams of CBD (replacing the grape seed oil in its usual batches), which Silverpeak extracts and provides directly for self-infusion in the home of the Aspen Business Center, also at home. in Mawa’s Kitchen’s flagship restaurant (which has also recently undergone extensive renovation, state-of-the-art ventilation and UV lighting systems included).
Silverpeak was a natural fit for MGFN’s CBD oil supplier not only because they will be neighbors of the center, but also because Mawa loves their product.
“Its CBD oil is completely organic, completely natural and clean,” Mawa added. “Working with someone local was also very important to us: everything has been grown right here (in the Roaring Fork Valley). I can literally go check out my plants.”
There are five flavors of FGM (also sold online): Berry Me, Green Machine, Health Nut, Out of Africa and Tropical Paradise ($ 14.95), which include a variety of organic ingredients from pumpkin seeds, flax, chia and hemp to raw almonds, walnuts and cashews, no added sugars, grains or fillings of any kind.
You can contact Katie Shapiro at katie@katieshapiromedia.com and follow her on Twitter @bykatieshapiro.
