How to make edibles: 3 simple cannabis-infused recipes

Cannabis edibles - you’ve tried them, you liked them, and now you want to make your own. Or maybe you haven’t tried them, but you’ve heard about them and want to make your own.

Whatever your needs, you’ve found the right place. We’ll run through the basics of edibles and 3 easy cannabis-infused recipes that will help you on your journey to becoming an edibles MasterChef.

What you should know about edibles

Before you venture into the world of cannabis edibles, there are some things you need to know.

They take time to work.

There’s a joke among cannabis enthusiasts that for an edible to work, you first have to say, “This edible is nothing.” Apparently, this magic phrase activates the effects of the edible.

And while it does make for a cool story (who doesn’t like hearing about cannabis and magic), the science happening behind the scenes is even cooler.

When you smoke or vape cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) gets into your bloodstream rapidly, and that’s why you get high quickly. But when you eat edibles, your body has to process THC differently, which takes some time.

"when you eat edibles, your body has to process THC differently, which takes some time"

When you consume an edible, it has to pass through the digestive system before you can feel an effect. In the digestive tract, your liver metabolises delta-9 THC into 11-hydroxy-THC[1], which is more potent.

So if it’s your first time taking edibles, don’t worry, you don’t need a magic phrase to activate them. Just give them some time, and you’ll feel the effects soon enough.

The secret is decarboxylation

Did you know that raw cannabis, even the high THC strains, has very little THC? The amount is so low that if you were to chew on the leaves, it wouldn’t get you high. Instead of THC, raw cannabis contains tetrahydrocannabinolic acid (THCA), an acidic compound that’s the precursor to THC.

To get THC from THCA, you need to expose the cannabis plant to low heat over an extended period. This can easily be achieved placing it in the oven at 115°C for around 35 minutes. The heat removes a carboxyl group from THCA, transforming it into THC, a process called decarboxylation.

Decarboxylation instructions

1. Preheat Oven: Preheat oven to 115°C.

2. Lightly Grind Cannabis: Using a hand grinder, lightly grind the dried flower.

   *Note: Try not to grind excessively as it may pass through the cheesecloth when straining.

3. Decarb Cannabis: Line a flat baking tray with baking paper or foil and spread ground-up cannabis evenly over the tray. Insert the tray into the oven and heat for 35 minutes.

4. Remove From Heat: Remove from oven after 35 minutes.

It’s as simple as that. So before you make your edible, make sure to decarboxylate your raw cannabis flowers.

How to make cannabis edibles

Something else you need to keep in mind when making edibles is that the strain of cannabis you use will determine the potency. This is pretty self-explanatory, so we won’t go too much into it.

Now for the good part.

Making cannabutter

Of all the cannabis edibles, cannabutter is probably the easiest to make, and if you are a beginner, the one you should start with. It’s the building block for a lot of edible recipes, and we believe that every aspiring cannachef should know how to make cannabutter.

We did a deep dive into cannabutter, including an easy cannabutter recipe.

Once you’ve got some cannabutter handy, you can get cracking onto making some actual edibles!

Alternatives to cannabutter

If butter isn’t your cup of tea, there are alternatives you can use. Canola oil or coconut oil are the two most popular alternatives, especially for making edibles like CBD gummies.
We’ve found cannabutter to be the most versatile for general edible recipes. Feel free to experiment by substituting cannabutter with your preferred alternatives in the recipes below.

Making cannabis-infused brownies

If cannabutter is the easiest edible to make, then pot brownies are the most iconic. Most people (myself included) will tell you that brownies were the first edibles they’ve ever tried. The genesis of our love story with cannabis.

If you’ve never tried cannabis brownies, we have a recipe we’re sure you’ll love. For those of you who have had brownies before, try our recipe and let us know how it compares.

Cannabis brownies recipe

Ingredients

• ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

• ¾ cup all-purpose flour

• ½ teaspoon of salt

• ¼ teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 cup white sugar

• ¼ cup brown sugar

• ½ cup of cannabutter

• 2 large eggs

Instructions

1. Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 180°C and set aside a greased metal baking pan.

2. Dry Mixture: Mix flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking powder together in a bowl. Make sure to sift the cocoa powder and flour to remove lumps. Set this bowl aside.

3. Cannabutter Mixture: In a second bowl, cream together the brown sugar, white sugar, and cannabutter.

4. Add Egg and Vanilla Extract: Add the vanilla extract and eggs to the cannabutter mixture and beat on medium speed for a minute. At this point, the colour should lighten slightly.

5. Combine and Transfer to Pan: Add the mixture in bowl 1 to the mixture in bowl 2 and beat on low until everything is well mixed then transfer it to the greased baking pan.

6. Bake Brownies: Place the pan in the oven for 25-30 minutes. And when the brownies are ready, let them cool for 30 minutes.

7. Enjoy: Your cannabis-infused brownies are now ready to be served. Enjoy!

Making cannabis-infused bacon

If brownies aren’t for you, and you are looking for something meatier, then you should try cannabacon. Making cannabis-infused bacon is easy, all you need is bacon and cannabis.

Cannabis-infused bacon recipe

Ingredients

• Few strips of bacon

• Decarboxylated cannabis (refer to instructions on decarboxylation)

Instructions

1. Preheat Oven: Set oven to 135°C.

2. Prepare Bacon: Place several strips of bacon on an ungreased baking paper and sprinkle the ground cannabis on the top side of each bacon strip.

3. Cook the Bacon: Place the bacon in the oven for 10 minutes.

4. Remove and Flip: Remove the bacon from the oven, flip it and sprinkle some more ground cannabis on the side that’s now on top.

5. Return Bacon to Oven: Return it to the oven and let the bacon bake for another 10 minutes, then remove it from the oven.

6. Enjoy: Your cannabis-infused bacon is ready to be served!

Our favourite thing about this recipe is that you’ll have leftover fat that’s infused with cannabinoids. And you can use it in so many creative ways, such as a substitute for oil when you are frying eggs.

Making cannabis-infused ice-cream

On hot summer days, ice cream is your best friend. If you want to take it to the next level, then you should try cannabis-infused ice cream. Making homemade cannabis-infused ice cream is easy.

Cannabis-infused ice-cream recipe

Ingredients

• 2 cups thickened cream

• 4 tbsp cannabutter

• 395g sweetened condensed milk

• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

• Chopped dried fruits & nuts to make it yummier (optional)

Instructions

1. Thaw Cannabutter: Let cannabutter thaw on counter until room temperature

   Tip: Avoid using the microwave as it can destroy the cannabinoids in the butter.

2. Whip Cream: Whip the cream in a large bowl until soft peaks form.

3. Combine rest of the ingredients: In a second large bowl, combine the cannabutter, condensed milk, vanilla extract and fruit and nuts (if using), and mix thoroughly.

4. Fold in Cream: Fold in the whipped cream with the mixture in the second bowl.

5. Store and Freeze: Put the now combined ice cream mixture into an airtight container and freeze for 6 hours.

6. Enjoy: Your cannabis-infused ice cream is ready!

Final Thoughts

There you have it, three simple recipes for making tasty cannabis edibles. We hope this has inspired you to put on the apron and make yourself some yummy cannabis-infused dishes. Make sure to share this article with your friends so that they can learn just how simple it is to whip up some delicious cannabis edibles.