But that's just what Verenium Corporation (NASDAQ: VRNM) does. This company is the product of a merger from earlier this year, Celunol and Diversa. Celunol was making ethanol out of farm waste, while Diversa used of enzymes to accelerate reactions for industrial processes -- such as deriving ethanol.

With corn prices rising this year in response to the increasing demand for ethanol, it looks like these alternative approaches will become increasingly important. It still remains to be seen whether Verenium can generate ethanol at a rate that is cheaper and less ecologically taxing than regular gas, but the signs are positive.

Beyond producing ethanol, VRNM also generates revenues by licensing its technologies to other companies -- for example, the BioEthanol plant in Osaka, Japan is using VRNM technology for its own production of ethanol -- and from using its enzymes in other industrial processes, as well as in the health and nutrition markets.

These green companies are risky, of course, as it's a new field and the world is still waking up to the need for greentech. But the course is clear, and demand for cleaner types of energy is only going to grow. It's the dreamers like the people at VRNM who will be making great profits in the coming years.

Type of Stock: A biotechnology company that is on the cutting edge of current biofuel technology.

Price Target: I wrote about this stock back in July, when it was below $5. Since then it has gotten almost up to $7 (a gain of almost 40%!) but is now back below $5.50. If a few analysts have picked this one to hit $13 in the next year or so; there could be some real upside, but this one is only for someone who can stomach some risk. You may want to wait to see if it has some growth before grabbing it. If you're below $8 you should be fine.

Hilary Kramer,author of the newly released Ahead of the Curve, is a financial editor and money coach for AOL and an authority on investing. Visit her at Hilarykramer.com.