We don’t know about you, but here at Green Goddess, the holidays mean lots of home-baked treats: Gingerbread, snickerdoodles, thumbprint cookies, shortbread… even that old doorstop: Fruitcake! But given that a dispensary, well, it’s understandable that we like to spice things up a little bit. That’s why we make our own cannabis-infused cannabutter!
If you’ve never cooked with cannabutter before, you’re in for a treat! In addition to adding potent cannabinoids and terpenes to any food you cook with it, cannabutter adds its own richness and flavor. Best of all, even if you’re a novice cook or baker, making your own cannabutter couldn’t be easier! We’ll walk you through the steps, and share some simple recipes that will have you chomping at the bit to make your own cannabis-infused goodies!
How to Make Your Own Cannabutter
Homemade canna-oil is an incredibly versatile (not to mention delicious) trick to have up your sleeve. At its heart, it’s nothing more than butter—or the fat or oil of your choice—infused with fresh (or already vaped) flower. Because you’re the chef, you have control over which oil and which cannabis strain to use. Here’s a basic method:
Measure out one cup of fresh cannabis flower (or what some folks like to call “AVB”: Already Vaped Bud) and one cup of the cooking oil or butter of your choice. We’re partial to butter, obviously, but also a fruity olive oil or a rich and neutral-tasting coconut oil.
Next, carefully grind the cannabis into small chunks, but not powder. You want the pieces large enough so that a standard kitchen strainer will catch all the plant matter later.
Combine the oil and the flower in a double-boiler or a slow cooker and heat them on “low” or “warm” for a few hours. You can use a regular saucepan, too, but you might run the risk of burning the oil (especially if you’re using butter!). No matter what method you use, have a kitchen thermometer on hand—a cheap one is fine—and make sure the temperature doesn’t exceed 245°F.
Let the infusion cook for as long as you can. We suggest 4 – 6 hours in a slow cooker, 6 – 8 hours in a double-boiler, and at least 3 hours in a saucepan.
Once the time is up and the oil is infused, let it cool a bit. Then—carefully!—pour it through a cheesecloth-lined strainer. Resist the urge to squeeze the plant matter! This will add more chlorophyll and more of that “weed flavor,” but not more cannabinoids.
And…you’re done! The cannabutter will keep for at least two months on a dark pantry shelf, and typically twice as long in the refrigerator.
What Do You Make with Your Cannabutter?
The sky is really the limit when it comes to what to make with your cannabutter! You can sub it in for up to half the butter or oil in your favorite recipes (you can use more, but it can tend to dominate the flavor). Use it to top a “baked”—hee hee!—potato, even stir it into coffee or tea! But because we’re bearing down on the holidays, here are a few favorite canna-cookie recipes for you to try:
- Cannabis Chocolate Chip Cookies from Emily Kyle Nutrition
- Cannabis Sugar Cookies from Stoner’s Cookbook
- Oatmeal Canna Cookies from Greatist
You can place your order for flower on our online menu. We’ll let you know when you should swing by our Venice Beach dispensary to pick it up!
