How to make a no-bake cannabis-infused sponge cake
While I consider pastries one of life’s greatest gifts, baking has never been a strong suit. A pie crust? Sure. Some shortbread cookies? Maybe. But anything more elaborate feels like a game of glutinous Russian Roulette. The potential for disappointment is just too high.
So when I committed to making a dosed dessert for a recent movie night, I made sure to weigh the odds in my favor. I left the baking to the professionals at Sheng Kee, a Chinese bakery a few blocks from Grass HQ, and focused instead on the frosting. I snagged a strawberry Hong Kong Swiss roll from the bakery, and opted for a simple whipped cream topping, infused with cardamom, cinnamon, and a ¼ oz. of home-grown Blueberry Indica.
The recipe was straightforward but time consuming -- the perfect endeavor for a stoned Saturday. After decarbing* and grinding the flower, we threw the weed, spices, and heavy whipping cream into a double boiler and set it to simmer over medium-low for about two hours, stirring occasionally and being careful not to let the cream burn. Then we sieved the solids and stuck the stuff in the fridge. After about an hour we grabbed the hand mixer, threw some powdered sugar (2 Tbsp) and vanilla (1 Tsp) in the bowl and got to beating. With in minutes, our magical weed cream was transformed into a fluffy, airy cloud of sugar, dairy, and THC. It was time to dress our jelly roll.
We coated our strawberry sponge cake with the cannabis-infused whipped cream and gently placed small weed-leaf cutouts on its surface. We then dusted the top of the cake with a fine pistachio powder and carefully removed the stencils, making sure not to let the excess nut dust spread. The end result was sweet, spicy, fruity, nutty and potent AF. Since the THC wasn’t directly baked into the cake, though, everyone was free to indulge at their own pace.
For my part, I was stoned before I left the kitchen. Licking spoons is kind of my thing ;)
INGREDIENTS
¼ oz. cannabis flower
2 Cups heavy whipping cream
4 cardamom pods crushed
1 Tsp. cinnamon
2 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1 Tsp. vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment and cover with cannabis. Bake for 40 mins. Remove cannabis from oven and grind.
Combine cream, spices, and ground cannabis in a double boiler and heat on medium-low, stirring occasionally for 2 hours, maintaining a low simmer. Be careful not to overheat
Remove solids with a sieve and place in fridge to cool.
Remove from fridge and beat the cream with a hand mixer, slowly incorporating sugar and vanilla, until the cream forms stiff peaks.
Put your dosed whipped cream on or in something and chill.