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With the health benefits of CBD grabbing the limelight, it is becoming mainstream and the ultimate healthy ingredient to incorporate into our daily regime. One of the most exciting aspects of CBD is its product diversity. You can reap its benefits as topicals, edibles, and vaping products. Interestingly, today you can find vape kits specially designed to vape CBD.
The most recent innovation is to use CBD in baking, especially in homes. Curious? Stay hooked to know all about it.
Benefits of baking with CBD
Baking with CBD offers several advantages like:
1. Long-lasting effects
When ingested as an edible, CBD is released into our system slowly. Hence, you experience its effects for a much longer time compared to other delivery mediums.
2. Non-psychoactive
CBD in baked delicacies renders all its health benefits without the ‘psychoactive high’ that cannabis is notorious for.
3. Complete control over potency and dosing
Baking allows the measuring of the serving size of CBD. Once you get the basics right, you can precisely calculate the amount you need to use and consume to get the desired result.
4. The flavor of CBD is disguised
CBD has a natural earthy and bitter taste. Mixed with other ingredients, the flavor of CBD gets easily masked in both sweet and savory recipes. Hence, you can deliciously consume CBD and can enjoy the benefits of cbd gummies.
5. Easy and versatile
Baking with CBD is straightforward. You can use CBD as CBD oil, tinctures, isolate, and crystals in baking. You can churn out versatile and lip-smacking edibles that go beyond the regular gummies and candies. Granola bars, pasta, cakes, pastries etc., are some lip-smacking examples.
Things to know about baking with CBD
To become a pro in baking with CBD, you must have the following tips and tricks up your sleeve.
1. Choose the right CBD
Not all CBD products (like vaping e-liquids) are conducive to cooking. High-quality CBD oil or tincture is the best choice to start with. When choosing a CBD oil, you must pay attention to:
- Flavor
CBD oils and tinctures come in various flavors like fruity, minty, etc., to mask their earthy and bitter taste. You also get CBD oil with the pure herbal flavor of hemp. You need to choose flavors that combine well with other flavors and give you a lip-smacking outcome. For instance, mint-flavor is a mind-blowing choice for chocolate cakes and cookies.
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Concentration
The concentration of CBD is the key to help you determine the dose of CBD you intend to impart per serve. For instance, if you use 100 mg of CBD oil to make 24 cookies, the CBD dose per cookie is 4 mg.
Measurement plays a critical role in baking. Hence, based on your oil measurement required and the targeted CBD dose, you can choose an oil with the appropriate concentration.
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Base
CBD oil is made by infusing potent cannabinoid extracts with a carrier oil. Most CBD oil has hemp oil and coconut oil, but some might have other bases like olive oil, canola oil, etc. Each carrier oil has different properties, tastes, and textures. You need to choose a base oil that works best with the baking recipe.
2. Always mix CBD with high-fat content
CBD is lipophilic. It means that it loves fat and easily dissolves in it. This way, its bioavailability is increased and also more easily digestible by our body. Hence, regardless of whether you are making a sweet or a savory dish, it’s best to mix the CBD well with the fat source like butter, vegetable oil, cream, etc., before adding to the recipe. It will also help evenly distribute the CBD in the finished product.
3. Pay attention to temperature
Temperature is a critical factor when cooking or baking with CBD oil. The unique flavor, aroma, and effects of CBD oil are due to its cannabinoids, terpenes, and flavonoids components. These are fragile compounds that start breaking at high temperatures and finally evaporate.
The boiling point of CBD usually varies between 320°F and 356°F. You would lose all beneficial compounds when the temperature exceeds this benchmark. Baking for an extended period would also decompose the CBD, thereby losing its potency and effectiveness.
If your recipe needs to be baked at a higher temperature, you can try other innovative ways to add CBD. For instance, you can add CBD to the icing mixture of cakes, in the filling of doughnuts, etc.
4. Keep serving size in mind
Like you measure all other ingredients in baking, you should also measure the CBD amount you want in each serving. If you are not too confident about it initially, you can start low and adjust appropriately the next time you are baking.
5. Store properly
Proper storage of the baked CBD goodies is as crucial as the entire cooking process. Being sensitive to heat and light, CBD quickly loses its potency. The best way to store the CBD goodies is in an airtight container in a cool and dark place like a cupboard. Proper labeling would be a bonus.
Wrapping up
CBD is undoubtedly the most buzz-worthy ingredient to incorporate into your daily cooking and baking routine. It is a fun way to enjoy the nourishing benefits of CBD. Start with recipes that you know like the back of your hand, and then take steps ahead to unfold the healthy and exciting world of CBD bakes!
