The kids are back to school, so we decided to launch Ardent Academy - bringing you the science to answer the most pressing questions we see being asked in the community! 🎓 First up - what's the deal with infusing milk and cream?
Instead of infusing butters and oils, for delicate recipes, or to enhance coffees, teas, and other beverages, milk and cream can be enticing alternatives. But how well do milk and cream extract the beneficial cannabinoids like THC and CBD from the plant? How effective are they as infusion bases?
We put the FX to the test, and we're excited to share yet another method of infusion, with lab results to back it up! Check out our infused milk and cream recipe ideas after the testing results, and try your hand at THC or CBD infused dairy. 🐄
Weed Milk & Cream Test Results
We set out to make all-purpose CBD milk and cream infusions, perfect for the recipe ideas listed down below. The first step is always activation (decarboxylation). After a precision decarboxylation on the A2 setting of FX, our activated flower had over 130 mg of CBD per gram.
We took 2 grams of this activated CBD flower and infused 1 gram into 1 oz of milk. The other 1 gram of activated CBD flower was infused into 1 oz of cream. You might have guessed that the cream, with it's higher fat content, had better infusion capabilities than the milk, and you would be right!
After the FX infusion cycle, the weed milk had over 64 mg of CBD and the cream had over 90 mg of CBD. That’s approx 50% infusion rate for milk and approx 70% infusion rate using the cream.
Looking closely at the results, you can also see small amounts of other cannabinoids also present in the infusion, resulting in a broad spectrum of cannabinoids in the final product. These small yet significant amounts of THC and CBC in the infusions alongside the CBD act in synergy to enhance their individual impact - also known as the entourage effect. Creating full-spectrum products that harness all of the plant's potential is one major benefit to activating and infusing flower on your own, rather than using heavily processed products like distillate.
Weed Milk and Cream Summary: If you’re looking to extract the maximum amount of THC or CBD, infuse butter or oil, which have infusion rates of close to 90%. However, cream, at 70% infusion rate, can also be a good alternative, especially if the recipe wouldn't work well with butter or oil. Lastly, infuse milk if you’re willing to sacrifice some cannabinoids for your tasty recipe, but know that your infusion rate will hover around 50%. Note: you can always avoid any loss by using all of the plant material in your dish (not straining after infusion), which is ok for some recipes and uses, but obviously wouldn't work for others.
After infusion, give your CBD milk or THC milk a chance to fully chill and then test it out with your favorite cereals or use it to dunk your afternoon cookies.
Also, if you want to know how to make weed ice cream without the separation and taste issues that can come with using infused oils to create frozen dairy products, this becomes possible using infused milk and cream.
Classic mac and cheese is also an option - use your favorite recipe or give this one a try:
If you'd like to make this recipe one instead of two servings, use half the ingredients and make the whole recipe right inside your FX! Just use the A2 setting to complete steps 3 & 4 instead of the stovetop.
