LAGUNA BEACH, Calif., Jan. 24, 2013 (SEND2PRESS NEWSWIRE) -- Yolande Smith, a holistic healer, natural foods chef and nutrition expert has joined the Alegria Fresh team. Smith's focus is to show people how to rid themselves of chronic diseases such as diabetes, cancer, obesity and heart disease by better understanding how food can heal and assist those who wish to feel better and have more energy by developing healthier eating habits.

Alegria Fresh is hosting its first class in a series entitled "Healing Foods," to teach people how to select nutrition-rich food and prepare them in unique and sumptuous ways.

"Many people know what foods heal the body, but are challenged to prepare them in great tasting ways free of the ingredients that cause disease," said Erik Cutter, managing director of Alegria Fresh. "Participants will discover the secrets to preparing fabulous cuisine free of inflammatory ingredients such as dairy, oils, salt, sugar, grain and animal protein."

Classes will be offered every other Sunday at 3 p.m., starting on Jan 27. The class, which lasts 2 hours, is $50 per person, with a limit of 8 per class. Yolande Smith and Jessica McLeish, local raw food chefs and nutrition experts, will facilitate the class.

"There are endless ways to prepare healing foods, which prevent and reverse chronic diseases while detoxifying the body," said Yolande Smith, natural foods chef. "With our simple recipes, anyone can enjoy delicious food and increase energy for optimum performance every day."

Class menus have been designed using locally grown, plant-based healing foods, including fresh-picked produce from Alegria Farm, Laguna Beach's only hydroponic vertical farm growing leafy greens and medicinal herbs. Each class will feature up to three dishes, including decadent healthy desserts, fully demonstrated so participants will be able to reproduce the results at home.

Those interested in participating may RSVP to Jessica McLeish jessica@jmcleishpr.com or 949-294-3554.

About Alegria Farm:
Alegria Farm is a new commercial hydroponic vertical farm employing over 120 hydroponic towers growing over 8,000 plants in less than 1/20th acre. Alegria Farm is Orange County's first hydroponic vertical farm and the first West Coast showcase for the Verti-Gro(R) system, which uses no soil, 90 percent less water, 70 percent less land, 50 percent less fertilizer than traditional organic farming and zero toxic pesticides. This high performance growing system produces clean, natural food faster than traditional farming and allows plants to grow bigger and stronger, making plants naturally pest resistant.

Alegría Farm produces an exotic tasting variety of leafy greens, medicinal herbs and heirloom vegetables. Hydroponic farming is soilless and utilizes coconut fiber instead of organic soil, which virtually eliminates toxic pesticide usage to produce stronger plants that are substantially more nutrient-rich. For more information on Alegría Farm or to schedule a tour, please visitwww.AlegríaFresh.com or follow on Facebook and Twitter. Alegría Farm is the high-performance urban agriculture division of EnviroIngenuity. Produce from the farm is sold under the Alegría Fresh tradename. 

About EnviroIngenuity
EnviroIngenuity was founded in 2009 by Erik Cutter. The company is comprised of forward-thinking professionals, whose goal is to take advantage of the growing demand for more efficient, cost effective sustainable energy solutions, employing solar PV, hi-efficiency LED lighting, green building and hydroponic vertical food production technologies, the latest venture being the development of Alegría Farm. EnviroIngenuity’s mission is "advancingreenergy" and reducing waste, thus better utilizing limited natural resources. As we invest in a lower carbon future, the EnviroIngenuity team is focused on helping organizations move forward to deploy sustainable energy solutions using disruptive technologies. www.EnviroIngenuity.com

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