I originally posted this in the
ignatz weekly weed report but it's probably better off sitting separately.
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Also this week, in anticipation of Queen's Day on Monday, I prepared a batch of cannabutter and some cupcakes:
Cannabutter
Time: 5-10min prep, 30-60min cooking
Yield: approx 200gr of THC-infused butter for use in cooking, baking etc.
Ingredients:
- 250gr (US: 2 sticks) butter, unsalted
- 5-8gr (approx 1/4oz) trim, ground bud
Equipment:
- double boiler or two sauce pans that you can nest inside one another, or a heatproof bowl or dish set over a pan of water. The important point is that you use indirect heat to melt the butter!
- strainer or cheesecloth
- storage container
Make the cannabutter:
- Remove the butter from the refrigerator and allow it to soften, cut roughly into equal cubes to make it easier to melt
- Boil some water and fill the bottom half of the double boiler (or the larger pan), simmer on lowest possible heat.
- Grind or chop any large buds with a grinder or food processor. Personally I collect all the trim and kif from all the stuff I buy -- so I had a large weed baggie basically full of shake, stems, bud I didn't want to smoke, etc. I didn't weigh it though. You can also add hashish -- I also threw in some iceolator which I didn't intend to smoke.
- Add the butter to the top half of the double boiler until melted, a few minutes
- If using hash, add it first to the butter and then stir: you should see it dissolve. Then add your shake, trim, bud, etc. Stir and cover, keeping the double boiler on lowest possible heat.
- Continue cooking for 30-60min, or longer if you prefer, stirring occasionally. The mixture should be dark green and it should give off a distinct cannabis scent.
- Remove the pan from the heat and prepare to transfer to the storage container. I first poured the mixture out of the pan, through a strainer, into a large Pyrex measuring cup. Press the mixture into the strainer, mix and press again, repeat until you get as much of the liquid out as possible. If you are using a cheesecloth, you can do the squeezing by hand but use caution because the butter will be hot and could burn you.
- Pour the mixture into the designated storage container and refrigerate or freeze. You can use it just as you would in any recipe that calls for butter.
Koninginnedag Orange Space Cupcakes with Orange Space Buttercream FrostingTime: 20min prep, 20-24min cooking
Yield: 12 space cupcakes (with frosting, 1 cake = 1 dose)
Ingredients:
Cupcakes
- 1 1/2 Cup flour
- 1 Cup sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 C (1 stick, 115gr) cannabutter, softened
- 1 large egg, plus 2 large egg yolks
- 1/2 C sour cream
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1-2 teaspoons orange zest (optional)
Frosting - 3/4 C (170gr) cannabutter, softened
- 4 C (454gr) powdered sugar
- 2-3 teaspoons orange zest
- 2-3 teaspoons orange juice
Equipment and Preparation:
- mixer, mixing bowls, spatula
- muffin tin, lined
- pre-heated oven 350F / 170C
- cannabutter left at room temperature until softnened
Make the frosting:
- Using a mixer, combine the softened cannabutter and orange zest in a large mixing bowl, approx 30-60 secs
- Add the sugar in four installments, keep blending until the mixture is smooth, fluffy and creamy
- Add the orange juice a little bit at a time to loosen the frosting a bit -- don't add too much otherwise it will become runny
- Put the frosting in the refrigerator for at least 30-45min (you will have time while you make cupcakes)
Make the cupcakes:
- Whisk the dry ingredients (flour, sugar salt, baking powder) in a large mixing bowl
- Add the wet ingredients (cannabutter, egg + yolks, sour cream, vanilla extract, orange zest) to the dry ingredients and mix together until smooth. For convenience and even distribution, I mixed the zest and vanilla with the sour cream before adding it.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula and continue stirring to ensure the batter is smooth, there are no lumps or dry spots
- Dispense the batter evenly into the lined muffin tin and place at the center of the pre-heated oven for 20-24mins. The tops of the cakes should be golden brown and skewer inserted in the center should come out clean.
- Set the cakes on a wire rack to cool for at least 45min before frosting. The unfrosted cakes will keep for 3 days or so in an airtight container stored in a cool, dry place.
Now, seeing as I made these and ate them (with some independent testers) I would recommend the following: only frost the cakes as you intend to eat them because you certainly will not eat them all in one go -- if you do though, let me know how it goes ;) I ate a total of three on Queen's Day: the first one seemed to "hit" straight away, but that could also be from the space frosting being, well, basically THC and sugar :) Then it produced a mild, wavy trip that would sort of ebb and flow -- just when you thought nothing was happening, you'd feel the effect again. And of course there was the requisite permagrin and subsequent jaw and facial muscle ache when you 'trip'. The second one was definitely a bit more trippy and third, well, I was just plain knackered by then. It had a strange effect on my appetite, where I felt alternately hungry and then not, and my palate, which was alternately dry and not.
I'm not huge on eating ganja food, but this was a fun experiment and a good day on which to do it. And the central goal of making good tasting, light ganja food was certainly met -- I do love a brownie too, but aren't some space cakes just so "heavy" and cloying? The key is the verstality of cannabutter, and obviously how strong you make it!
cheers,
-paniked
