Italian school uses cannabis for cooking

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PERUGIA, Italy, Jan. 11 (UPI) -- Italy's Flavor University, part of the National Food Education and Culture Center, said cannabis is an "amazing ingredient" for cooking.

The school said Tuesday the cannabis recommended for cooking is cannabis sativa, which contains only trace amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, ANSA reported Wednesday.

Glenda Giampaoli, director of the Museum of Hemp Sant'Anatolia di Narco, which helped the university come up with its recipes, said the THC content of the cooking cannabis, which is also known as industrial hemp, is "virtually zero."

"It's regularly inspected by the Ministry of Health," Giampaoli said.

The school said hemp, which it described in its recipe book as an "amazing ingredient," has a taste similar to hazelnut and is most commonly used in the form of flour, but the leaves, seeds and oil can also be used to "add a twist" to recipes.