by Ed Rosenthal
Coffee’s rich, complex flavors make an enjoyable marijuana beverage. WAMM’s Mother’s Milk makes a knockout café au lait. Finely ground hash can be combined with already-made coffee in a small pan over low heat. Stir for a few minutes until the hash has thoroughly dissolved and is mixed evenly in the drink. Sweeten to taste and serve warm or over ice.
WAMM’s Mother’s Milk
From Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM.org)
•1 oz marijuana leaf that has been crumbled or ground to a fine consistency
•2 qt whole milk (or almond or coconut milk)
Combine leaf and milk in a Crockpot and cook on low for a minimum of 2 hours. WAMM recommends a cooking time of 8 to 12 hours. Do not open. Do not stir. Do not worry.
The plant material may float; that’s fine. Strain the plant material from the mixture using a cheesecloth- or panty hose–lined strainer.
For a little flavor add cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, or other spices near the end of the cooking process or after milk is finished.
Depending on the potency of the marijuana used, serving sizes may range from ⅛ to ¼ cup.
It will remain fresh in the refrigerator no longer than regular milk, but it can be frozen. One convenient method of storing it is to fill ice-cube trays. Once frozen, store the milk cubes in sealed containers in the freezer to prevent dehydration.
Bhang Lassi
Bhang Lassi is the traditional Indian beverage for Holi, the Hindu celebration of spring, but it is imbibed all year round. A curd-based drink flavored with sugar and spices, it can also be made with yogurt and milk. You can make a Bhang Lassi at home with canna milk or some hash or kief.
In India, Bhang Lassi is prepared by mixing a bhang ball (typically a blend of oily hash and finely ground dried bud) with hot milk that has usually been infused with almond paste, a bit of coconut milk or butter, and some ginger, saffron, or other spices. Vendors, like chefs, have their own recipes using different combinations of spices. This is my recipe. Experiment based on your own taste.
•1½ cups yogurt/curd, chilled
•½ cup canna milk
•4–8 tsp sugar to taste
•½ tsp cardamom powder (optional)
•1 pinch saffron (optional)
•1 pinch garam masala (optional)
•1 tsp rose water (optional)
•1 tsp of almond paste, chopped almonds, or pistachios
Mix the ingredients with a blender. Serve over ice.
To make this recipe with hash or kief instead of canna milk, gently heat the ½ cup of milk and mix in the amount of hash or kief desired, stirring constantly for 15 minutes. Do not let it boil. Combine with the other ingredients, and serve over ice.
WATER-BASED CANNA TEA
Marijuana teas are common folk medicines used for upset stomachs of children and adults in Jamaica. Cannabinoids are weakly soluble in hot water, so making a tea by boiling buds, leaf, or trim in water will not extract much of them. The heat and agitation of boiling knocks some of the cannabinoids from the leaves. They float loose in the water. Many of the pigments and terpenes that give marijuana its color and flavor are water soluble, so the tea takes on a pleasing color and aroma and has a mild psychoactive effect. Adding dry lecithin granules, which are emulsifiers, helps the cannabinoids mix into the tea.
MARIJUANA FLOUR
Ground marijuana can be substituted for part of the flour in a recipe. I tasted bread made with whole wheat and hempseed flour with finely ground marijuana. It had a pleasant, savory taste. When used as a replacement for flour, dried marijuana should only be used in a ratio of one part ground leaf material to two parts regular flour to maintain a good texture and taste.
To turn leaf or bud into flour, simply grind it thoroughly in a clean coffee grinder. If the plant material is in pieces too big for a grinder, run it through a food processor or flour mill first. After grinding, use a flour sifter to ensure your marijuana flour has a consistency much like wheat flour.
Preparing marijuana flour with butter, margarine, or oil makes it even more effective and can be used to replace the flour and part of the oil or butter in a recipe. This method converts the THC acid to THC, dissolves some cannabinoids into the butter, and eases digestion.
To Make Potentiated Flour
Melt two cups of butter (four sticks) or oil in a skillet. Reduce marijuana leaf to a flour-like consistency in a blender or coffee grinder. Add 1½ to 2 cups leaf flour to the melted butter, margarine, or oil. Cook covered on lowest heat for 20 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent burning and reduce hot spots that will evaporate the THC and other cannabinoids. Add this flour to any standard recipe that calls for flour and butter or oil, reducing the regular flour and butter by the amount replaced with marijuana buttered flour.
ADDING DIRECTLY TO FOOD
Just as no two cooks make the sauce exactly alike, there are many recipes, methods, and techniques of preparing herb for ingestion. The most popular ones are adding the herb directly to the recipe, dissolving the cannabinoids in butter, oil, or alcohol, or using milk to dissolve and emulsify them.
Although people have tried adding cannabis to everything from soups and salads to meatloaves and lasagnas to desserts, some foods are better for delivering cannabinoids than others. Foods that contain the key ingredients in which cannabinoids dissolve will make the most efficient use of the THC in the plant material. Snacks or bite-sized foods are better than heavy or filling dishes because they do not tax the digestive system.
I was dining at a grower’s home. He said to me, “Notice the third shaker on the table?” There were three shakers: salt, pepper, and golden glands—kief. “I use the glands on food all the time,” he told me. “At first the grittiness got to me, but now I hardly notice it. It has sort of a nutty taste. When I add it to soups or saucy stuff, it melts after a few minutes and blends in. The glands tend to stick together in the shaker, so I added about 10 grains of uncooked rice. Problem solved.”
Marijuana and kief can be added directly to food, just as you would another spice or herb. In fact, in Cambodia low-grade marijuana is for sale in the vegetable market for exactly that purpose. It is added to a dish just like parsley. Either whole sprigs or chopped pieces are used. This works best when the food to which it is added contains some oils or milk fats and undergoes mild or brief heating.
Finely ground trim or fan leaves can be used in soups, stews, sauces, and gravies including curries, molés, and barbecue sauce. The most important consideration when adding this magic spice to your recipe is to figure the number of servings people are likely to eat and to add enough, but not too much. People vary in appetite and tolerance, so it is best to err on the low side, rather than making the food too intense. Some people find raw kief, raw hash, or uncooked plant material difficult to digest. These folks may have a more enjoyable gastronomic experience with cannabinated foods where the cannabis ingredient has been cooked in or the plant material has been strained out.
Some foods have too delicate a taste to absorb the complexity that cannabis lends to food. Many of the pigments and other flavorings can be removed from the cannabis before it is used. Soak the cannabis in room-temperature water for about 15 minutes before using it in the recipe. Strain the leaf from the water. Some of the green flavor and pigments will stay behind in the water, but the leaf will still hold the glands. They are ready to use in recipes.
Ganja Guacamole
Avocados contain 15% or more oil, making them a good food to mix with marijuana.
Ingredients
•3 avocados
•1 tsp oil (or canna oil, for an ultrapotent batch)
•1½–2 grams of ground marijuana
•1 lime
•1 tsp salt
•½ cup diced onion
•3 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
•2 tomatoes, diced
•1 tsp minced garlic
•Cayenne pepper (optional)
Medicated guacamole.
Directions
Place the avocados, oil, ground marijuana, and salt in a bowl. Squeeze in the lime. Mash until puree. Mix in diced onion, tomatoes, cilantro, and garlic. Add cayenne pepper to taste for an extra kick. For best results, refrigerate for two hours before serving. Serves 4–6.
FOOD ADVENTURES
As you explore the world of cannabinated food beyond brownies, here is a list of food suggestions:
•Flavor extracts, particularly orange extract, seem to neutralize cannabis odors. Just add a teaspoon to any cookie or cake recipe. Orange extract imparts a nice fruity flavor to baked goods and is good with chocolate. Orange extract can also be used when making marijuana butter or oil.
•Strong spices such as ginger, cinnamon, cloves, or nutmeg mask the smell of marijuana when making baked goods. A teaspoon of any of these spices added to cookie recipes blends well with the taste of marijuana leaf. Chocolate also helps neutralize the smell of marijuana and disguises any green coloration.
•Light foods and snacks are the best match when looking for recipes to cannabinate. Yummy foods that make great candidates for cannabinating include the following:
·Hummus and other dips
·Banana bread and other dessert breads
·Chocolate pudding
·Ginger cookies, peanut butter cookies, or your other favorite cookie recipes
Photo: Joe Burull
A BIT ABOUT COOKING TIMES
Many edible oil and butter makers think that soaking the cannabis for long periods of time, between 2 to 12 hours, increases the potency or effects. I think that almost all of the cannabinoids and terpenes dissolve soon after they mix with the warm oil, and certainly after an hour. So the recipes here have been modified to reflect that viewpoint. You may wish to experiment with longer cooking times and see what you think.
STORAGE
Cannabinated foods are the same as other marijuana products. Heat, light, and oxygen deplete THC and other cannabinoids over time. Sealed, opaque containers protect your cannabis treats from exposure to oxygen and light. When eggs, milk, butter, or other perishable ingredients have been used the food should be stored in the refrigerator. For longer shelf life, store cannabinated foods in the freezer. Wherever and however you store them, label them clearly with the date they were made and something that makes it obvious that they’ve got the magic ingredient.
Chapter 12.
Topical Uses of Marijuana
Herbs have been used to treat skin problems for thousands of years. Five thousand years ago, Ayurvedic practitioners used marijuana preparations. Cannabis-enriched lotions, salves, and other topically applied products are still used today. Marijuana’s active ingredients—cannabinoids and terpenoid essential oils—are absorbed through the skin for direct therapeutic effect.
Indications include arthritis, inflammation, rheumatism, sore joints and muscles, and to aid the healing of bone fractures. They are also used for a myriad of skin conditions, including burns, eczema, psoriasis, pruritis (itching), abrasions, and sores. Skin cancers have been reduced or eliminated by directly applying concentrated cannabis oil extracts to the tumors in both humans and dogs. Even migraines are treated by applying a marijuana topical to the forehead, temples, and neck.
Cannabis topicals work especially well for localized pain and inflammation. Skin cells have both CB1 and CB2 receptors that cannabinoids act on for therapeutic effect. With pain, the presence of phytocannabinoids directs the firing nerves to reduce their signaling, alleviating the discomfort. People’s lives have been changed using marijuana topicals, including those who have been able to stop taking opiate narcotics for pain, grandparents with severe arthritis who have been able to hold their grandkids for the first time, and musicians who are able to use their fingers again.
Lotions made with cannabis penetrate the skin to relieve aches and inflammation. A commercially produced brand is docGreen’s Therapeutic Healing Cream. It is gentle yet effective and comes in an assortment of scents.
When applied topically, cannabinoids are not absorbed in large enough quantities to affect consciousness. In very rare cases, experienced users who are highly sensitive to marijuana’s effects say they notice a little something. Absorption through the skin does not appear to produce the same marijuana metabolites as ingesting or inhaling it, so there is little risk of testing positive, even with regular use. That includes marijuana topicals as a potential choice for people whose jobs require drug testing.
Topicals vary in how well they transport the cannabinoids and terpenes, as well as the time they require to do it. The active constituents in marijuana—THC and other cannabinoids and terpenes—absorb more readily and evenly when they are dissolved in a solution. They are lipophilic, meaning that they are soluble in alcohol, fats, and oils.
Cannabinoids’ affinity for oils means that they are easily dissolved in lotions and salves that contain alcohol, glycerin, or oils. These help the cannabinoids penetrate the outer layer of skin.
Taking a hot bath or shower, soaking the area to be treated in hot water, or adding heat using a heating pad before applying a topical marijuana product increases how much will be absorbed because the heat opens skin pores. Adding capsaicin (found in hot peppers) is another way to add some heat and open the pores. Be careful—too much capsaicin can create a burning sensation. St. John’s Wort or other homeopathic herbs can also be added to the topical to help your skin along with the healing cannabinoids.
Covering an area treated with a cannabis-infused lotion can increase absorption by a factor of ten. Transdermal cannabis patches are now available from some dispensaries, but you can achieve the same effect by simply applying a cannabis topical to the affected area and covering it with a bandage.
Topical preparations that have some alcohol content may be absorbed better because the alcohol opens up skin pores. Applying rubbing alcohol to an area of soreness or inflammation before applying the marijuana topical increases absorption, though alcohol should never be used if the skin is cracked or there are open wounds or sores. Alcohol can create a burning sensation and dries out the skin.
An increasing variety of topical ointments, salves, and other marijuana-infused topical preparations are available in dispensaries. Select products that use the highest quality ingredients, as your skin will absorb the bad as readily as the good. Not all states require complete labeling on cannabis products, so do some research. Stay away from products that contain parabens (used as preservatives) or petroleum-based chemicals (some artificial fragrances), as these can cause a host of other health problems.
Making your own topical is a bit more involved than making canna butter or a tasty batch of magic brownies, but it doesn’t have to be. It’s simple to make a poultice.
One advantage of making your own medicinal topicals is that you choose the ingredients. Marijuana is not the only medicinal herb that can be used. For instance, if you want a topical to combat inflammation, add to your marijuana topical herbs such as aloe vera, boswellia (frankincense), camphor, eucalyptus, ginger, or mints. Dried calendula flower petals and comfrey are popular, proven herbs that can provide healing benefits. For an analgesic marijuana-infused oil or ointment, adding arnica, willow, balm of gilead (poplar buds), or anything with capsaicin makes it even more soothing. A few drops of Vitamin E enhance its restorative effects on skin.
Shea butter, olive oil, beeswax, and other quality products that can be used as bases for a topical are widely available from local health food stores and on the Internet. Olive oil and shea butter promote absorption, while beeswax is more surface and sealing.
As with all things marijuana, the quality of your final product and its effects is largely determined by the quality of the materials you start with. Many people use nothing but trim and other material that would otherwise be discarded. To produce the finest grade, start with bud. The variety of marijuana used influences its topical effects, because of variation in the cannabinoid and terpene profiles.
MARIJUANA ROOT APPLICATIONS
Marijuana roots have historically had a place in topical preparations, too, with some made exclusively from boiled roots or in combination with stalks. The earliest recorded medicinal use of hemp root is in Chinese medicine from 5,000 years ago, which recommended juicing the root or using it as a paste for pain relief. Ancient Roman medicine employed boiled hemp root to alleviate gout and joint pain and applied raw root on burns. Soaked marijuana root was being used in poultices in Europe by the sixteenth century to relieve gout and arthritis, and fresh juice was reported as good for burns. In Eastern Europe boiled root was a traditional treatment for all types of skin inflammation.
The properties of roots of different varieties may be as variable as the plants that grow from them. The composition of roots has been studied far less than other parts of the plant, but terpenes have been identified such as friedelin, which helps fight pain, inflammation, and fever. Some studies have found alkaloids in varying concentrations, including pyrrolidine and piperidine, as well as choline and atropine, which are also biologically active. Cannabinoids have also been detected in low concentrations.
Boiling is one of the most common ways of preparing marijuana root for topical use, sometimes in combination with oils. When boiled for many hours it produces a dark, oily substance that can be directly applied or used in a poultice. Roots can also be dried and ground to a powder using a clean coffee grinder, then mixed with oils, salves, or butters. Powdered root mixed with alcohol makes a good liniment.