Bay Area woman learns to grow cannabis plants. Now, she's dispensing recipes.

For as long as she can remember, Penny Barthel of Albany has been growing herbs in her tiny backyard garden: basil, mint, rosemary, the classics.

But these days, she's also planting something that's taken her cooking to new heights, and maybe her mood too.

"She's like the best friend who always makes you feel good," Barthel said, pointing at an 8-foot-tall leafy plant. 

That "best friend" is cannabis. It started as a favor for someone battling cancer. Rather than buy from a dispensary, she wanted something she could trust was clean.

"I decided to help her figure out what to do, and I got 100% hooked," Barthel said.

That hook became a book. Today, Barthel is known as "The Cannabis Gardener." Think Martha Stewart, with an extra green thumb.

Now she's dispensing recipes, including CBD teas that calm your nerves without getting you high, and chocolate sauces that make no such promise.

She's far from alone. Dan Mar runs the Cannabis Studies Lab at Cal Poly Humboldt. He says that as the stigma fades and laws change, more people are growing clean, chemical-free cannabis at home.

"It's not really that complicated. Folks can grow cannabis on their own," Mar said.

More than 20 states now allow it. A recent Harris poll found that 72% of consumers are concerned about the presence of pesticides in their cannabis. 

But for all the talk of a booming industry, Barthel's own philosophy is simple.

"It's inexpensive. I mean, sunshine's free," she said.