Bummer!

Well imagine my suprise when I discovered this morning that a major cannabis website had published one of my recipes. But the bummer is they didnt even credit me. Just said "I stumbled on this recipe"  Then proceed to share it nearly word for word. Not even a link back to my blog!

So oh well. I try to share for the benefit of patients who live in other states where I cant provide medibles for them directly. I have always believed that shared knowledge helps to elevate us all.

So now you all can see why I havent been sharing so many recipes lately. I will hope to get all this knowlege in a simple cookbook form in the future and let you know how to get that.

Intellectual property is such a tricky issue on the internet. But I can tell you I surely feel violated and snubbed. :( 

So please feel free to use and share any of my published recipes, but hey could you please link back to this blog or credit THChristi if you share these on your own site.

Thanks for listening.

Stay up!

THChristi

We are still going strong

Its been awhile since I blogged and I apologize for that. We have been blessed to be busy with our work and passion, medical marijuana.

It's a real honor and blessing to be able to help other medical marijuana patients find relief!  We have been doing this through an awesome venue. The Patient Cannabis Exchange is a medical marijuana farmers market in Tacoma, Washington. Not only have we found a great place to offer our unique cannabis products to other patients here, but we have also found a community of other like minded patients and providers.

If you have a medical marijuana authorization come out on a Sunday and check it out. Its worth the drive from wherever. You'll find a happy helpful environment with ALL KINDS of cannabis medicines. Donation amounts are often less than your local dispensary because you will be dealing directly with the farmer or producer.

THChristi

Decarboxylation. Making active medibles

"My edibles don't kick and I put a lot of medicine in them. What went wrong?"  This is a question that comes my way time and again.

We put a lot of time money and effort into growing and harvesting and curing our meds but I've noticed some of us don't take the same care when making our medibles. It's one simple step that can change everything. 

From google:

1. Decarboxylation is a chemical reaction that removes a carboxyl group and releases carbon dioxide (CO₂). Usually,decarboxylation refers to a reaction of carboxylic acids, removing a carbon atom from a carbon chain.
   
   
   In the case of marijuana, decarboxylation will change THCA to THC and make the medicine activated for oral consumption. This important step will ensure that the medibles you make are fully potent when you eat them. Not to say there isn't medicinal value in THCA bit if your looking to get the THC benefits this little step will make sure of that. 
   
   
   There are different theories out there to get the best decarboxylation of your starting material. These are the times and temperatures I use. Based on my lab testing I'm hitting between 95-99% decarb using these. 
   
   
   For kief: spread on a cookie sheet or Pyrex dish in a 250 F degree oven for 35 minutes
   
   
   For bud and trim:  grind and spread on a cookie sheet or Pyrex dish in a 250F degree oven for 30-35 minutes
   
   
   Cool and store or use right away for cooking. And yes I actually prefer to decarboxylate my material and then make butter or oil from that. When making butter or oil it will decarboxylate to some degree in the process. But I've found that you create a more potent and active butter or oil by decarbing first. 
   
   
   I hope this helps you guys with your medible making. 
   
   
   Stay Lifted!
   
   
   
   

   

   
   

   THChristi 

   
   
   
   
   
   

MMJ Raspberry Sorbet

Beat the heat with this summertime treat!

I just love summertime.  The organic berries from my garden are ripening and I have bowls full of raspberries every day right now.  I've been making jelly, jam and syrup to put up for the winter a pint or 2 at a time as my berry bushes keep yielding.  Since we've been in a heat wave here in the Seattle area I decided it was time to do something a little different with my berries.  I mean after all just how much jam do we need?

I've also had some requests recently for a medicated recipe featuring a glycerin based cannabis tincture.  I thought why not combine 2 great ideas.  So here it is..... MMJ Raspberry Sorbet.

What you will need:

• A metal or pyrex 9x13" cake pan
• wire sieve or cheese cloth to remove the seeds
• small saucepan
• freezer with room to put your cake pan for about 12 hours
• 1 Cup Water
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 3 Cups fresh raspberries
• Juice from 1/2 of a lime
• 4 doses of glycerin tincture  (dosing is variable depending on a patients tolerance and the strength of the tincture itself.  If you normally use glycerin tincture for medicating you should have a good idea of what amount works for you as a dose.  For this recipe I used 3 squirts of the tincture per serving as we both have fairly high tolerance levels and will be eating this medicine as a nighttime treat.  This will be a good amount and allows for a really good nights sleep.)

How to make it:

1. In your small saucepan combine the sugar and water.  Cook over medium heat until all the sugar is dissolved.  Allow this to cool to room temperature
2. Add your fresh raspberries to the cooled sugar water and using a stick blender mix until the raspberries are fully mixed in.  **if you don't have a stick blender, pour sugar water and raspberries into a blender and pulse until well mixed
3. Use your wire sieve or cheesecloth to strain out any of the raspberry seeds.  Reserve the liquid and toss the seeds into the trash.
4. To your reserved liquid add the juice of 1/2 a lime and your 4 doses of glycerin tincture.  Mix well.
5. Pour your liquid into your 9 x 13" cake pan.  Place in the freezer for 4-12 hours to allow the sorbet to set up and freeze through. To keep it light run a fork through the freezing mixture every couple of hours.
6. Once your sorbet is fully frozen it is ready to serve.  I like to garnish with a few fresh garden raspberries and some lemon balm leaves like in the picture above.  Other good garnishes are chocolate and mint (a perfect match for raspberries), whipped cream, or shortbread cookies.  Of course you could always serve on an ice cream cone too!

I hope you will enjoy this fresh and tasty summertime recipe.  Let me know how it works out in your cannabis kitchen.

Stay lifted!

Medical Marijuana Fruit Leather by THChristi

Strawberry flavored Organic
Red Pear & Rhubarb fruit leather

Tired of candy and other sweets when really you just want a dose of medicine?  This recipe might help.

I'm going to share with you my recipe for Strawberry flavored Rhubarb and Red Pear fruit leather.  This is a hit with patients who are looking for something different and even a little healthy to eat as a medible. Because this recipe contains rhubarb as one of the main ingredients I have added some additional sugar to counteract the tartness found in the rhubarb.  Don't worry though, if you want to convert this you can easily substitute any fruit in the amounts listed in the recipe.  If you use a sweet fruit in season you may leave the sugar out entirely or you can reduce it to taste.  You may also substitute any desired sweetener for your dietary needs.  While fruit leather may sound daunting or complicated it's actually quite simple to make.  Let's get started!

What you will need:

• A large stock pan
• 2 greased cookie sheets with sides 
• a blender (I like the stick type blender but you can use a counter top unit as well)
• 2 Cups of coarsely chopped Rhubarb
• 2 Cups of coarsely chopped Red D'anjo Pear with peel on
• 1 1/3 Cup of water
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup sugar ( add more or less to suit your taste)
• 1 package strawberry flavor kool-aid (unsweetened)
• 2.5 grams of decarboxylated kief (or add more or less for desired potency)
• parchment paper for wrapping
• kitchen shears
• zip lock bags or other airtight container for storage

Instructions:

1. In your stock pot combine the rhubarb, pears, water and sugar.  Place on stove top on medium heat.  Heat to a simmer stirring occasionally.  Cook for approximately 15-20 minutes or until your rhubarb is softened.
2. Use your stick blender to process the contents of the pot into a nice puree constancy.  If you don't have a stick blender (immersion blender), pour the contents into your counter-top blender or food processor and pulse until you achieve a puree texture.  
3. Add to your mixture 1 packet of strawberry flavored unsweetened kool-aid and your decarboxylated kief.  
4. Again using your stick blender or counter top model pulse until everything is well blended.
5. Divide your mixture into 2 equal 1/2s.  Pour 1/2 of the mixture onto each of your greased cookie sheets. Spread until it's evenly distributed on each sheet.
6. Set your oven to 170F (or your oven lowest setting).  
7. Place the pans in your oven.  Use a wooden spoon to keep the oven door a little bit gaped.  This will allow the moisture to leave the oven as your fruit mixture dehydrates.
8. Now we wait.  I found the mixture takes anywhere from 6-12 hours to dehydrate in the oven.  You can check if it is done by attempting to peel up a corner of the fruit leather.  When it's done the leather will easily peel up.
9. Once you've achieved the desired texture, remove the sheet pans from the oven and allow it to cool on your counter.
10. When your mixture has cooled completely, score all around the edges of your sheet with a sharp knife.
11. Tear off a piece of parchment paper approximately the same size as your cookie sheet.  Place this paper over the top of your fruit leather and use your hands to rub out any trapped air bubbles in the paper
12. Starting in the corner, peel up your paper and fruit leather.  If you have scored the edges of your pan well you will be able to pull the whole sheet out in one big piece.
13. place parchment side down on a clean work counter.  Using a sharp pair of kitchen shears cut your leather and parchment into 18 evenly sized pieces.  To prevent the scissors from sticking you can grease the blades with cooking oil or non stick spray.
14. Place the cut leather pieces into individual zip-lock bags or stack them into an airtight container.

If dehydrated fully this leather can last for a very long time.  Store in a cool and dry place.  If you still have some moisture in your fruit leather you will want to store in an airtight container in your refrigerator.

** Variations for other fruits:  Simply substitute the fresh chopped fruit of your choice.  You can certainly use blends of fruit as well, just be sure that you have a total of 4 Cups of fresh chopped fruit.  Reduce the amount of sugar to taste and then follow the same instructions above.  Feel free to use an alternative sweetener such as maple syrup for this recipe.  Also if you don't want an artificial color/flavor you can make this without the kool-aid.  I mainly use the kool-aid flavoring when working with rhubarb because it mellows the sour/tart rhubarb flavor a bit.  When making with berries and other fruit I just allow the flavor of the fruit to shine through and eliminate the kool-aid from the recipe.

**Do not substitute wax paper for parchment paper.  The wax paper will absorb some moisture and become almost impossible to remove easily from the finished leather

**Alternative to cutting into rectangles you could use a cookie cutter to cut out fun shapes or you could cut out a long strip and roll it up to make a fruit roll-up

I hope you will enjoy this recipe.  If you have any questions, just leave a comment below and I will get back to you with my best answer.

Thanks for reading!  If you are enjoying my recipes please subscribe to the blog to get the latest blog posts right in your inbox.

For updates and day to day happenings with THChristi follow me on Facebook, Twitter and/or Instagram

No time to make your own?  Come find me at the Patient Cannabis Exchange farmers market in Tacoma, WA every Sunday.  I will have medicated fruit leathers along with a lot of other medible and topical medication options.  

Stay well my friends!

Cannabalm Lotion Bars

Here's a topical that I made at the request of a patient suffering from rheumatoid arthritis.  I've made these in a roll up tube that I found on ebay for ease of application, but you could make the same recipe in any kind of a container with a resealable lid and just apply by hand as well.

Here's what you'll need:

1-2 whole cayanne peppers
1/4 Cup of plain coconut oil
1/4 Cup of Cannabis infused coconut oil
1/2 Cup of Shea Butter
2/3 Cup of shredded unbleached bee's wax
5 drops lemongrass essential oil
1 drop geranium essential oil
1 drop ylang ylang essential oil
3 drops tea tree essential oil
A small sauce pan
resealable container or empty roll on tubes
sieve or cheese cloth


Here's how to do it:

First off we will infuse the plain coconut oil with Cayenne pepper. Cayenne pepper is known in the herbal community to help mitigate pain.  Check out this link for a bit more information: Learningherbs.com

To infuse the plain coconut oil with Cayenne pepper first slice the pepper the long way to open it.  Place pepper and 1/4 Cup of plain coconut oil in a small sauce pan.  Over low heat melt the coconut oil.  Leave on low-medium heat for approximately 30 minutes (you can go longer for a stronger infusion) to infuse the coconut oil with the pepper stirring occasionally.

Using the sieve or a cheese cloth, strain the pepper, seeds & stems from the melted coconut oil. Return the infused coconut oil to your pan and discard the pepper.

Next add your cannabis coconut oil & Shea butter to the pan.

Return pan to burner on medium low.  Heat until all of your oils are melted.  Add in the bee's wax shreds.  Continue heating until the bee's wax is melted and well incorporated.

Remove pan from heat.

Add in all of your essential oils.

Stir well.

Allow to cool slightly until warm but not solid.

Pour mixture into your roll up containers or your resealable container.

Allow to cool on counter or in refrigerator until solid.

Once cooled completely, place lids on containers.

To use:

This balm can be applied to swollen joints or anywhere you are feeling pain.  It will help with inflammation as well as pain. Just be sure not to apply to eyes, nostrils or any other tender areas ;) as the cayenne pepper will give a burning sensation on these sensitive areas.

Note: I have been using this on my psoriasis and it doesn't seem to give a burning sensation.  Try it on a small area of your skin first and see how it feels for  you.

I hope you will enjoy this recipe and that it can help you to find relief as well.

Comment for questions or just to let me know how the recipe works out for you.  Also if you find it to work well for a certain medical problem let me know so I can share that with other patients who may also find relief.

Enjoy!

Fibromyalgia, Me and Medical Marijuana

So with all my cannabis recipes I thought it might be good to tell you all a little about my fight and why I am a medical marijuana patient. Here's my story:

A few years ago I began to notice a big shift in my general well being. First I started having a lot of random days where I would feel like I was coming down with a flu bug but they would pass after  a day or two and never really develop into a full blown flu. Another thing I noticed was the lack of energy I had available on any given day. Somedays I woke up full of energy only to be sapped and exhausted by lunchtime. I began suspecting something was wrong but with no health insurance I was not one to run into the doctor. I lived with these strange symptoms along with daily hip pain for over a year. I tried eating healthier. I tried getting more rest. I got a new bed hoping better sleep would allow my energy level to return to normal. All of these helped a small degree for a time but the lethargy & exhaustion always returned. My hip pain never seemed to lessen and I began to have random roving pain throughout my body.

One day out of the blue my pain levels escalated from bad to worse. One minute I was ok with background pain, the next minute I was in absolute agony. I tried meditation and deep breathing to calm myself down but the crippling pain remained. Then the spasms started. First in my face & hands. These mostly were an irritant but as they moved into my larger muscle groups they became very painful as well. 

That was the tipping point that got me to finally seek some medical help. 

First I saw a rheumatologist who sent me for a bunch of expensive blood work and X-rays. When my test results came in she  gave me a diagnosis of fibromyalgia and sent me home with muscle relaxers, pain pills and Vitamin D. 

I was on this rx plan for a couple of months but it didn't seem to help much at all. The pain pills masked the pain but made me edgy, itchy & irritable. The muscle relaxers helped to tame the muscle spasms but the side effect was low energy and then sleep for about 3 hours every time I had to take a pill. That posed an obvious problem when I had these spasms during the day. 

After awhile I began to question this course of treatment. The treatments were having as bad of an affect on my daily life as the symptoms had.  I wanted to find a way to get my energy back and limit my pain without a lot of side effects. I decided to see a naturopathic doctor. It was at my first visit that my doctor suggested I try a treatment plan that included vitamin supplements and medical marijuana. It was that day that changed my life. 

Now I'm 100% free of the rx meds and their harmful not to mention inconvenient side effects. I am on a daily dose of Rick Simpson Oil which I take before bed. This allows me to sleep more deeply which has improved my energy level throughout the day. I use medicated edibles to keep my pain levels in check along with topical mmj treatments for pain. I've found several good strains of mmj that when smoked or vaped immediately stop my spasms and tremors!  ( Harlequin & UW both the purple and green pheno). And for the pain that even the pain pills couldn't suppress I use my vape pen with Honey Oil Concentrate. 

This amazing natural medication has given me back my quality of life. Where pain once kept me on the sidelines observing life around me I can now actively participate. I can spend time working in my garden again. I can play with my granddaughter again. I can enjoy walking my dogs again. Wonderful!

But aren't their side effects from using medical marijuana?  Well sure. I suppose there are. For example one side effect would be the cotton mouth  that is experienced when smoking mmj and that is easily solved with a nice glass of water. How about the munchies?  Yep medical marijuana can definitely stimulate the appetite but that's easily solved by medicating inline with  my regular meal time. Last but not least doesn't medical marijuana make you high?  Yes, sometime and in some forms of the medication I do experience a high or a general sense of well being and happiness and that's just fine with me. I'd rather have mood elevation as a side effect than the feelings of pain, sadness & despair that came with the pain pills. I'll take a few minutes of laughter as a side effect of my mmj over the 3-4 hours of uncontrollable sleepiness that came from my rx muscle relaxers. I'll enjoy happy hungries over not bing able to cook or eat due to pain any time. 

So that's my story at least the short version. I still suffer with the multitude of symptoms that come with Fibro but less frequently and a lot less intensity. When my bad flares come, as they do I, can treat myself with the appropriate form of mmj and continue on with my day, my tasks, my hobbies & my life!

Peace & pot! 

Dank Doggie Biscuits

I've had a few requests for my recipe for making medicated dog treats.  As many of you know, marijuana can be good medicine for our 4 legged best friends too.  This is a personal choice so please do your own research before deciding if medical marijuana is the right course of action for you or your pooch. 

Here's a couple of articles that endorse or support this type of treatment:

• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/05/medical-marijuana-for-pets_n_3391770.html
• https://www.avma.org/news/javmanews/pages/130615a.aspx

I have also read some articles where dogs have become sick after accidentally consuming a human patient's medibles. Sometimes this can be detrimental if things that dogs shouldn't eat are in the medible (ie Chocolate & raisins).  The other problem is that most medibles made for humans contain high doses of THC which can be very disorienting and even dangerous to the animal. Please exercise caution and keep your medications up away from your pups.

In an attempt to limit the amount of THC in my dog biscuits I use the trim that remains after making infused butter or coconut oil  The key is to squeeze out all of the oil that remains in the cooked trim.  Once you have done this place the pressed trim in a small cooking pot and cover with boiling water.  Allow it to cool slightly and press again (I use a french press coffee maker to do this but you could also use a sieve and hand press it).  This will remove the water and any remaining oil.  Now you have the rinsed cooked trim material from which we will make our treats.

With all that said if you are wanting to make a medicated treat geared toward the canine in your life here's a recipe that I have created for my buddies.

Dank Doggie Biscuits

Ingredients you will need to make these treats:

• 1 Cup of rinsed cooked trim from making cannabis infused butter or coconut oil
• 1 Cup of dry oatmeal
• 1/8 Cup of water
• 1 1/4 Cup of whole wheat flour 
• 1 Tablespoon of natural peanut butter
• 1 egg -beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

Here's how you make them:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
   
2. Place the rinsed trim, water and oatmeal in a blender and blend on high until the mixture is pulverized.
3. In a separate large bowl combine flour, salt and baking powder
4. Add the wet pulverized mixture, peanut butter and beaten egg to your flour mixture and stir together until the mixture begins to stick together.
   
5. Pour your mixture onto a floured surface and knead by hand until everything is well combined. (about 5 minutes). Add additional flour as necessary.  You want this mixture to be the texture of a roll out cookie dough.
6. On a floured surface, roll out the mixture to a thickness of about 1/4".  
7. Cut out biscuits using a small or medium dog-bone shaped
   
   cookie cutter or use a pizza cutter and cut into small squares.  Use a fork to make holed in the dog bones (this will vent out any of the steam created and keep your biscuits fairly flat)
8. Place these cut outs on an UNGREASED cookie sheet*** This is SO important!  If you add grease or oil to these biscuits
   
   they will be TOO strong!!!!
9. Bake in the oven for 40 minutes
10. When your biscuits are done, remove from the oven and cool on a baking rack.

For short term storage you can place the cooled biscuits in a sealed container and keep in your fridge for up to 2 weeks.

For a little longer term storage place in a sealed container in

your freezer.  These will be good for about 4 months.

To store them long term without refrigeration will require a few more steps.  To do so place your cooked dog treats in a food dehydrator for about 48 hours or until their is no residual moisture remaining in the biscuit.  Trapped moisture will cause mold so break open one or two

of the biscuits to see if the center has been fully dehydrated.  Once you've removed all of the moisture these can be stored in a cookie jar at room temperature and will last for a very long time.

NOTES ON USING THESE BISCUITS:

Just like humans, each dog will have their own tolerance to marijuana in an edible form.  Use caution when giving your dog these treats until you know how much your dog can tolerate.  So start out small!  Each batch I make is different depending on the starting material and strain of marijuana used so I like to give my dogs about 1/4 of a biscuit and wait 45 minutes to an hour to see how effective it is.  If I notice that the pooch is still in pain after this waiting period I will give another 1/4 and again wait to see what affect it has.  I do this with each and every batch that I make for the dogs that way I can determine the acceptable dose.  Always err on the side of caution.... you can always give more but you can't take it back.  Remember the goal is pain relief, not a high dog.

I use these biscuits for pain relief, to relieve canine anxiety and to calm my dogs during the 4th of July celebrations, thunderstorms and when going to the groomer or long rides.

Best wishes & puppy kisses!

THChristi & friends

Tincture Teddies

After 2 day soak

Today I'm sharing a recipe for Tincture Teddies.

What you'll need:

• 1 package gummy bears
• A good amount of Cannabis Tincture (enough to cover the bears)
• Mason jar and lid or other glass container with a lid
• Time and patience

After 3 day soak

Instructions:

Place your gummy bears in mason jar. Cover bears with Cannabis tincture Place jar in fridge.  Shake jar daily.  When your gummy bears have doubled in size they are ready.  Store in sealed jar in the fridge and eat 1-4 bears as a medicated dose depending on your tolerance.  

Any tincture that didn't absorb into the gummy bears is now flavored like the gummies and can be taken by dropper full under tongue for a sweetened sub-lingual medicine.

These little Tincture Teddies help the medicine go down.  The sweet chewy little bears soak up the marijuana tincture and lend their fruity sweetness to what can be a very medicinal tasting plain tincture of cannabis.

Stay Elevated!

Bad Brownies

Like a rock!

Bummed out over a burnt brownie.  This thing is so hard that it is inedible for certain.  I've been banging it on the table repeatedly and it won't even break.  What the heck.  How is a patient to medicate when the medication is inedible?  I'm sorry but if this is an indication of your $5 edible menu, I'll pass.  

What I'm looking for are elevated edibles and they're not as easy to find as you might expect.  Every access point that I go to I'm always checking for something delicious that I can try for eating my medicine (my preferred intake method).  So far I'm seeing a real need in the area for someone to come out with a good line of edibles that are not just medicated but also of high quality and taste. 

In other edible news.... I'm making my second batch of medicated fruit leather.  The last one was strawberry-rhubarb.  This time I'm playing with rhubarb pie flavored leather.  Will let you know how it turns out. 

MMJ Honey Elixir - Make Your Own Medicine

Whether it be a work day, a visit from non 420 friendly family or friends or just because its an easy smoke free option, there are a number of ways that medical marijuana patients can be discreet and still be pain free. Today I made a MMJ Honey Elixir for this purpose.  Here's a quick and easy recipe for you to make your own.

Ingredients:

Equal parts honey
MMJ Alcohol Tincture

Equipment:


Mason Canning Jar
Double Boiler
Hot Jar Holder
Funnel
Towel
A WELL ventilated kitchen

To get started fill your double boiler bottom with hot water and set on stove to boil. Turn your vent hood fan over the stove on HIGH

In the top part of your double boiler mix equal parts of honey and an alcohol based MMJ Tincture (I'll post how to make your own in a future blog)

Once water is boiling on stove, turn heat down to MEDIUM HIGH.  Place honey mixture on top of boiling water.  Heat and stir constantly until all the alcohol has evaporated.

Place mason jar on a towel on your counter.  Use the funnel and pour your hot elixir into jar. Now add the lid and ring and hand tighten.  Jar will form a seal as it cools.  That's all there is to this one.

Uses:


Use your elixir in anything. Add it to tea, coffee or any beverage.  Use in recipes in place of honey.  Pour over pancakes.  Eat on toast.  Add some to mustard for a honey mustard dipping sauce or spread.  Very versatile.

Enjoy!

~THChristi