Artsy Shot: Getting High On Your Own Supply
A contribution by Kate
Executive Summary
Cannabis is finally legal in Germany, but smoking just isn't your thing? With Grandma's cannabis oil recipe, we're now revealing a long-kept secret guide to making so-called edibles, i.e. edible cannabis delicacies. We generally prefer edibles to smoking, as they are not only less harmful to health, but their effect can also be a good deal more magical, or even psychedelic – but why not try it yourself!
Who doesn't know it? You're with family for the holidays, and if you're lucky enough, a visit to Grandma's is a must. And as soon as you step through the front door, you're greeted with a warm welcome – especially by your nose, because it smells wonderfully of one of Grandma's special recipes again.
Grandma's recipes all have tradition, have been refined over decades, and may even come from generations before her. It's safe to say that nothing can compare to her recipes and culinary skills!
The Secret Cannabis Oil Recipe
Today, we want to share just such a tried and tested recipe, refined over the years, with you. Fitting with cannabis legalization – who would have thought it possible in Germany – here is the only cannabis oil recipe you will ever need. But beware, so-called edibles (i.e., edibles with magical ingredients) work somewhat differently than the more common form of consumption in this country, the joint – in high quantities, it is rumored, it can even become psychedelic.
However, the warning refers not only to the possibly different and slower, but at the same time longer, mode of action, but also to the dosage, because no matter who you ask about cannabis, you always hear the same story: The time in Amsterdam with an excessively dosed Space Cake (cannabis cookie) – after that, the temptation was never pursued again. That's exactly what we at the Psychedelika Club want to avoid, so we appeal to your common sense and remind you of an always appropriate psychedelic motto: Start low, go slow.
☝🏻 Disclaimer: This blog post is aimed at adults who already consume cannabis – it is not intended as an encouragement to consume. We point out that cannabis consumption can entail health risks. The post offers information on an alternative to smoking in order to potentially reduce risks arising from inhaling smoke. Please absolutely note our general risk notices.
Now enough with the preamble, get to the kitchen and to the secret recipe revealed to you herewith, with which you can make your next holidays a little smoother. Here's the good news: The recipe is inherently vegan, gluten-free, and if you want, even organic – Grandma is always particularly happy about that.
Ingredients:
- 250g coconut oil
- 4.20g cannabis flowers
Equipment (no knight's armor):
- Oven (or "Backrohr," as some colleagues here like to say)
- Baking paper
- Grinder (optional, but recommended)
- (Preferably small) saucepan
- Thermometer
- Funnel (optional, but recommended)
- Cheesecloth (alternatively, a thin dish towel will do!)
- (Fancy) glass for storage
Step-by-step instructions (suitable even for inexperienced cooks, promised!):
Decarboxylation – just do it:
Preheat your oven to 120°C and cover the baking tray (not the rack!) with baking paper. Crumble your cannabis coarsely and spread it evenly on the prepared tray. Bake it in the oven for 30-40 minutes (depending on the dryness of your cannabis flowers) – gently shake the baking tray every 10 minutes to evenly aerate the buds. And yes, this step is essential to convert THC-A into psychoactive THC through heat – because only then does it "kick in."
Grinding – I like it coarse:
If a grinder is at hand (preferably a large one), use it to coarsely grind the cooled, decarboxylated weed. In theory, you can also do it by hand, but it will take a little longer. Keep in mind that anything small enough to pass through your dishcloth or cheesecloth will end up in your oil, which you might not necessarily want for taste reasons – so don't grind it too finely!
Coconut oil – like melting into you:
Put all the coconut oil in a saucepan. Optionally, you can add a cup of water, which is particularly useful if you don't have a small saucepan, as the oil can then get too hot quickly. Heat the liquid over low heat until it is smoothly liquid.
Cannabis Infusion – it doesn't hurt:
Now stir in the coarsely ground cannabis. Keep the heat low (ideally above 70°C, but never above 90°C – otherwise you'll burn the precious cannabinoids) and let the mixture simmer for 2-3 hours; stir occasionally. Complete boiling should definitely be avoided!
Fine particle filter – for the environmental badge:
Once the mixture has cooled, place the funnel on your (fancy) glass and line it with the cheesecloth or dishcloth. Transfer the oil with lots of love (important!) and avoid pressing the cloth too hard. This prevents bad-tasting chlorophyll from getting into Grandma's oil. The leftover plant material is no longer needed for this recipe – if you don't just want to throw it away, you could, for example, brew a mild tea with it, make your houseplants happy, or, dried, put it in a sachet with other herbs to make an air freshener.
Let it cool – almost done:
It's best to cool the filtered oil in the refrigerator before further processing. This process can take a few hours, so it's a good idea to just leave the glass overnight. Anticipation is known to be the greatest joy, isn't it? If you added water to the oil during the production process, you can now pierce a hole in the solidified oil to drain the water.
Dosage – the most important step:
At this point, we would love to give you an exact indication of the optimal dosage, but this is not so easy, as the potency of the oil is influenced by various variables, and even more importantly, ultimately only you can find the optimal amount for yourself. But what are the decisive factors for the oil?
- The potency (THC content) of the cannabis used
- The duration of heating during production
- The average and maximum temperature during production
These variables are difficult to measure and do not necessarily have simple correlations: cannabis with 23% THC is not necessarily 5% stronger than cannabis with 17% THC; heating cannabis oil for two hours instead of one does not make it twice as strong; and heating it at 85ºC instead of 75ºC does not necessarily make it stronger.
Ultimately, it's hard to know how potent your homemade oil really is without trying a small amount. To test the potency, first spread 1 gram on a snack of your choice (an opened Oreo with "extra magic cream" works well, for example) and then feel how this dose feels after one to two hours. Based on this, decrease or increase the dose accordingly next time.
Your cannabis tolerance is, of course, also an important, if not the most important, factor in finding the right amount for you. The recommendation just made, to start with one gram, assumed zero tolerance. The regular smokers among you can probably also carry out the initial calibration with three, the seasoned stoners with five grams. When in doubt, less is more!
Once you've found your sweet spot, you can use the oil as a base for all your favorite recipes – simply multiply the gram amount of this highly scientifically calculated dose by the number of pieces or portions; so if your sweet spot per portion is two grams, you'll need a total of 16 grams for a cake with eight pieces.
Effect – the difference from a joint:
Edibles have a reputation for being one of the most potent forms of cannabis consumption; this is because our digestive system and liver convert THC into a more potent form, 11-hydroxy-THC, when we consume it orally.
This form of consumption not only works more strongly but also lasts significantly longer than that of a joint, vape, or bong hit. But don't be too hasty, because edibles take significantly longer to take effect, and you don't want to be the person who had too much. Generally, you can expect to feel something after about half an hour to an hour, but at the very latest after two hours. The peak usually occurs after one and a half to three hours and probably lasts for another two to three hours. Around three to five hours after the onset of action, you'll start to land again. At higher doses, as already mentioned, it can even become psychedelic; especially if you have already tasted a forbidden, psychedelic fruit.
Outro
Yes, we know, the recipe, as expected from Grandma's recipes, is quite elaborate and requires preparation time; but as you know from her feasts, the effort is worth it, because the pleasure return is enormous!
We want to clarify at this point that the recipe didn't actually come from Grandma's magical recipe box. She's not thrilled about cannabis legalization, and that's okay. But who knows, maybe one day you'll be the grandma or grandpa who passes on this delicious recipe to the grandchildren with a big smile – according to tradition and, of course, with appropriate education!
Now it's up to you what you do with it. One of our favorites is to bake banana bread with it, because that truly delights every (office) party and picnic. However, we ask you at this point to definitely inform potential tasters about the magical extra ingredient! Getting unexpectedly high is really anything but fun, and we don't want to turn even more people away from the healing power of the cannabis plant, especially when it's just starting to bloom in Germany.
🙏🏻 Feedback: Did you like this post or did it help you? Would you be interested in a Psychedelika Club Cannabis Club? Do you have praise, criticism, or other feedback about it? Then we would be immensely happy to receive an email at mail@psychedelika.club or a review on Google.
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