“Welcome to Psychedelicatessen, a weekly column exploring the world of cannabis cuisine, including recipes from the great chefs and ganjapreneurs who fuel our appetite for adventure.”
After a devastating body surfing accident more than 20 years ago left her with torn muscles and a broken back, the lady who now goes by the moniker Mama Kush was first introduced to the pain relieving properties of pot by a concerned friend. Mama went on to become a master pastry chef, trained by Le Cordon Bleu and the Culinary Institute of America, and used her skills to create cannabis-infused edibles for a friend suffering from cancer.
When Mama first started taking her savory medicated croutons to dispensaries in 2008, she was told “people only want sweet, come back with some Rice Krispie treats!” Recalling that memory, Mama laughed, “I can make anything and everything—I want to infuse products no one has seen before. No way am I making a Rice Krispie treat.”
Today, the Mama Kush product line includes diverse offerings like a moist teriyaki-flavored beef jerky, garlic hummus, granola, ravioli, doughnuts, marshmallows and kettle corn that you can find throughout California, especially in the San Diego and Los Angeles metropolitan area. You can even custom-order homemade medicated pies.
Mama focuses on all-natural ingredients, sourcing high-quality products and taking immense pride in her work.
“I want the purest oils, flours and herbs, and I don’t use BHO. I think it has a foul flavor,” she continued. “Don’t you want the best of the best?”
Mama’s fantastic scone recipe is the best of the best.
From her days at Le Cordon Bleu, this recipe is extremely versatile. You can remove the dill and add other herbs or substitute chopped jalapenos for a Cheddar Chili scone. The ganja flavor blends really well with the herbs and sharp cheese, and you can infuse the recipe in a few different ways. Use hash or cannabis-infused butter, or simply sprinkle decarbed hash into the dough.
“It melts right in when baked,” Mama Kush explained.
As always, dosage levels vary, so be cautious when ingesting new edibles for the first time. If you are using 3 grams of activated water hash with a 50 percent THC potency, you can estimate that about 1500 milligrams of THC went into the dough. With 15 equal scones, your dose would be 100 mg of THC per scone, which is a lot.
Adjust your dose by adding less hash or using less potent hash or cannabutter. When I re-created this recipe, I used one gram of hash and cut my scones smaller to yield 30 pastries at about 15 – 16 milligrams of THC each.
Cheba Cheddar Dill Scones
Yield: about 15 scones, depending on which type of pan you use—Mama Kush recommends a silicone scone pan.
Ingredients:
4 cups plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, divided
2 tablespoons baking powder
1 – 3 grams of water-based hash (optional)
2 tablespoons of finely chopped onion
2 teaspoons salt
3 ½ sticks cold unsalted butter, diced (28 tbsp)
4 tbsp cold cannabutter, diced (optional)
4 extra-large eggs, beaten lightly
1 cup cold heavy cream
1/2 pound extra-sharp yellow cheddar, shredded
1 cup minced fresh dill
Egg Wash: 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water or milk
Equipment: electric mixer, silicone scone pan OR parchment paper and a baking sheet, rolling pin, pastry brush, ruler and a dough scraper
First preheat your oven to 400ºF.
Combine 4 cups of flour, the baking powder and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the butter (plus cannabutter) and mix on low speed until the butter is in pea-sized pieces.
Mix the eggs and heavy cream and quickly add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Combine until just blended. Toss together the cheddar, dill and 1 tablespoon of flour and add them to the dough. Mix until they are almost incorporated.
Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface and knead it for 1 minute, until the cheddar and dill are well distributed.
Depending on whether you have a scone tray or not, spray the silicone tray with vegetable oil and fill them with a spoon or you can use the method below. In both cases, brush the tops with an egg wash before baking.
If you don’t have a scone tray, roll the dough 3/4-inch thick. Cut into 4-inch squares and then in half diagonally to make triangles. Brush the tops with egg wash.
Bake on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper for about 20 to 25 minutes, until the outside is crusty and the inside is fully baked. Consume within a day, storing in the fridge will make your scones less crispy.
