The idea of me reviewing any cooking product outside of microwavable bacon is a little laughable to me, I must admit. My culinary skills fall under basic survival. I know how to not completely repel a man with my cooking; meat and cheese and all that. I know how to feed a child; stick with starches, or foods the color yellow. I also know how to eat good food, like at a high-end restaurant. Without exploding oysters onto my shirt or whatever. Life skills. That’s what I know.
So, venturing into the world of self-made edibles has never been very enticing to me. Like, if I don’t enjoy or feel comfortable cooking normal food, why on earth would adding a mind altering substance to the chore make it any better?
And that’s where my entourage comes in. First, the husband David, who handles almost all the meat cooking here at casa de la Stoner Mom. In the next few weeks, he will be assisting me in trying out one of the protein-heavier meals from this book. And then, the BFF. Abby is an excellent baker, a culinary area that terrifies me. To the point where she’s the only source of dessert every Thanksgiving. With her, I will tackle one of the sweeter recipes.
And of course, I can’t do any of those things without making rad videos of the experience, so be on the lookout for upcoming cooking videos over on The Stoner Mom channel.
Okay, so now on with book!
The 420 Gourmet: The Elevated Art of Cannabis Cuisine
The foodie’s guide to cannabis: a smart, sophisticated, and beautifully illustrated cookbook for at-home chefs wanting to safely create and experience their own edibles.
The book is gorgeous. In typical “fancy cookbook” fashion, the photography is beautiful. The juxtaposition of cannabis nuggets to expertly crafted, gourmet food; leaves the reader with a sense of just how sophisticated cannabis truly is. It is in hardcover, with over 300 thick, glossy, pages of information, recipes, quick-reference charts, and photography. This is a cookbook to leave around the house. A conversation starter, classy, beautiful, and family friendly. I love this book!
How it’s Organized
Part One: Highlighting Cannabis
The 420 Gourmet is divided into two parts. Part one is dedicated to educating the reader on cannabis, making this an excellent resource for both newbies and connoisseurs. Regardless of your level of marijuana knowledge, this book is sure to teach you something new. Or in my case, many things.
In part one we have an in-depth and yet easy-to-follow explanation of all the basics that any cannabis cook would want to learn about. We learn about sativas, indicas, and hybrids, as well as popular strains within those categories. JeffThe420Chef covers understanding and controlling potency, including clear graphs to make the entire measuring and dosing process simple and painless (essential for those like me, whose eyes glaze over when confronted with numbers). There are detailed charts to convert and calculate your THC/CBD amounts per recipe and per serving, a gram conversion and measurement chart for butter and oil, a calculator chart for infusion of canna-butter and canna-oil.
Most helpful and illuminating to me, has to be JeffThe420Chef’s four step method to neutralizing the distinctive cannabis taste that makes choking down some edibles so difficult. That aspect of cooking with cannabis is the difference between mouth-watering recipes and ones that taste like grass clippings.
Part Two: The Recipes
Trust me when I say, the recipes in this book. look. freaking. wonderful. Like, call-your-bestie-over-and-look-at-these-pictures wonderful. This cookbook features recipes for all manners and types of meals. Here’s the recipe chapter list:
Butters & Oils
Sauces & Dips
Breakfast & Brunch
Small Plates & Appetizers
Soups, Salads & Sides
Vegetarian Mains
Meat & Fish Mains
Pastas & Breads
Sweets & Snacks
Entertaining & Gourmet
The first chapter on making canna-butter and canna-oils is easily my favorite. With easy instructions and lots of pictures, JeffThe420Chef walks the reader through making “Light-Tasting” Canna-Butter, Creamy Canna-Butter, Garlic & Rosemary Canna-Oil, and Honey-Whipped Canna-Butter and more.
There are so many recipes here I want to try. With 320 pages of information and recipes, I can tell that this is going to be the family cookbook that ends up dog-eared and stained in oils, with loose cannabis stuck in the gutter.
When the book came in the mail I walked over to BFF’s house and we looked through all the desserts. Again, there are so many that look/sound amazing, and we were busting fat dabs while perusing, so yeah it took awhile, but we have settled on making Strawberry-Lemon Kush Bars.drooool.
Now with David, I want to try something more meaty. Something more along the lines of a main course, or hearty appetizer. Current lusts:
Rib Eye with Canna-Buttered Blackened Corn & Celtic Sea Salt
Because this is such an educational, clear, and classy publication, this cookbook is appropriate for any household. With tips like The Rules of Hosting 420 Meals, Controlling Potency, Delivery Method and “Kick-In” Time, and with an ongoing emphasis on the medicinal benefits of cannabis, The 420 Gourmet is a great addition to the kitchen. It would be an excellent gift for both male and female, stoner or newbie, old or young. A truly sophisticated book, I would not hesitate to gift this to someone who is strictly anti-cannabis. Highly Recommended.
There are so many recipes here I want to try. With 320 pages of information and recipes, I can tell that this is going to be the family cookbook that ends up dog-eared and stained in oils, with loose cannabis stuck in the gutter.
Now with David, I want to try something more meaty. Something more along the lines of a main course, or hearty appetizer. Current lusts:
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