The OCS Guide to Hosting with Cannabis

Published on January 10, 2021 | Last updated November 20, 2024

While we’re all familiar with the standard trappings of an edible soirée — food, drinks and plenty of catching up — the legalization of cannabis and resulting products have given hosts a new element they can safely incorporate into their entertaining plans: cooking and serving cannabis edibles. Now you can whip up your own infused recipes to serve alongside regular courses, have pre-rolls on hand to offer guests or cap off a dinner with a delicious, ready-made infused dessert.  

We spoke to chef and cookbook author Rose Reisman, who partnered with a Licensed Producer on her cookbook Be Blissed: Easy CBD and THC Infused Recipes for Everyday, to get her tips on how to creatively and safely pair cannabis and food. 

Safe Serving

Gatherings that include cannabis — either infused in food or served on their own — must always be 19+ adults-only affairs. Plus, they require extra attention and care to ensure they stay that way. 

Even if you’re always careful to keep cannabis products away from kids and pets in lockable boxes or somewhere else little hands and furry friends can’t reach, it can be easy for a toddler — or an intrepid 15-year-old — to get into the “special” platter of desserts during the hubbub of a get-together.  

Tips for Safe Serving 

• Never leave infused dishes or other cannabis products unattended. You should also carefully label any infused foods that you may be prepping in your fridge or freezer beforehand, especially if you’re not the only one who has access to it.  

• Always let guests know beforehand that it’s going to be an infused affair, and make sure those who are partaking have a designated driver to take them home, or other form of transportation.  

• Just like you would have non-alcoholic drinks available for guests who don’t want to partake, you should make sure to offer non-infused beverages and foods. You can also consider having CBD-only products on hand, to provide your guests with options. 

“I’ll always have something that’s not infused so if even at the last minute someone decides they’d rather not [consume cannabis], I have something to offer them,” says Reisman.  

SHOP BALANCED SHOP CBD-DOMINANT 

Stock up

Just like you stock up on frozen appetizers and a variety of beverages to be ready at a moment’s notice during entertaining season, consider having some of your favourite dried flower available for cooking with or responsibly sharing. Buying dried flower in large formats can be a cost-efficient way to keep something special on hand — either a crowd-pleasing favourite or something new your guests haven't tried before. 

SHOP BULK BUYS 

Know your audience

If you plan on infusing your dishes, how do you know exactly how to dose your recipes? Take into consideration who your guests are. What’s their previous experience with cannabis? What’s their tolerance level? 

Reisman likes to stick with a CBD-forward, micro-dosed meal that stretches over several courses, with a maximum of 2.5 mg of THC per person spread throughout the entire evening. It's important to remember that everyone's tolerance is different. “Start low and go slow” should always be the mantra when hosting an infused event, and guests should be clearly informed ahead of time about which dishes are infused and their potency. 

Cooking with cannabis

You can incorporate cannabis into your recipes in a number of ways. You can infuse your own butters and oils (which takes a bit of work), use ready-made ingestible oils available at Authorized Cannabis Stores and from OCS.ca, or even incorporate a small amount of dried flower into sauces that don’t require heating, which will add an herbaceous flavour without the psychoactive properties. 

Reisman’s book is all about cooking and baking with the Blissed Breathe High CBD Oil, though there are many ingestible oils on the market to choose from. Reisman’s recipes use millilitre measurements, and most ingestible oil packaging comes with a dropper for precise dosing. While some oils have a mild flavour, others are virtually flavourless.  

 Reisman’s 3 Rules for Cooking with Infused Cannabis Oil      

• Drizzling a finished dish with oil may not always work; it can leave a bitter taste. 

• You don’t want to cook your infused dish at a high temperature because the oil will lose its potency. Reisman doesn’t recommend sautéing, frying or cooking in the oven beyond 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

• You always want to combine an infused oil with another fat like ghee, coconut oil or butter because THC and CBD may be better absorbed by the body when consumed along with another fat.  

SHOP INGESTIBLE OILS

Easy edible desserts

Here’s a quick cheat: You can serve your guests infused desserts that you don’t even need to make from scratch. Using simple add-ons to jazz up some of the tasty pre-made edibles that are available at Authorized Cannabis Stores and on OCS.ca can be a delicious way to impress your guests. It’s very (very!) important to remember what infused foods or cannabis products you’ve already served that night, and their potency. Have non-infused dessert options available, cut infused desserts into mini portions for milder potency, and make sure to clearly label all options. 

Consider flavour profile

Whether you’re infusing cannabis directly into the food itself or pairing cannabis products with courses, you’ll want to pick products that complement what you’re serving, which means you need to consider the terpene profiles in your flower, vape or edibles.  

Found in many types of plants (not just cannabis), terpenes are fragrant oils that produce a unique taste and smell. Different cannabis strains will have terpene profiles that are earthy, woodsy, herbal, spicy, diesel (or “gassy”) or cheesy, all the way to citrusy and sweet. The five most common terpenes are: 

1. Limonene. A citrus-scented terpene, limonene is found in various cannabis strains, as well as in the rinds of fruits like lemons and oranges.    
2. Pinene. This terpene has a distinct, refreshing pine scent and is found in pine trees and various herbs. It has a crisp, herbal taste, contributing to the flavour profiles of certain cannabis strains.    
3. Linalool.With a lavender-like scent, linalool is found in many flowers and plants, including lavender and various cannabis strains, and is commonly used in perfumes and aromatherapy products.     
4. Myrcene. Myrcene gives cannabis an earthy, fruity, musky aroma. Beyond cannabis, myrcene is found in mangoes, hops, thyme, lemon grass and cloves. 
5. Beta-caryophyllene.  A unique terpene that adds a peppery, spicy, woody aroma to cannabis, beta-caryophyllene is also found in black pepper, cloves and balsam. 

A trained budtender can help you find what you’re looking for.  

Sharing is caring

Infusing your food isn’t the only option, of course. If you’re not into edibles but you still want to host a gathering where guests can safely share cannabis (without passing a joint around), there are a number of ways to do it. 

It can be as simple as just having a plate or bowl out that you’ve arranged with pre-rolls. For easy sharing, consider pre-roll multipacks, which come with at least four joints per package, some with a variety of cultivars or in smaller sizes. 

SHOP MULTIPACK PRE-ROLLS

Cooking with cannabis can be a fun and rewarding way to enjoy its unique benefits, but it's important to do so responsibly. Paying attention to dosage, choosing the right strains, and following proper preparation methods will help you have a safe and enjoyable experience.  

When preparing for your next event, make sure you're purchasing cannabis from a legal and reputable source. Our guide on spotting legal cannabis retailers will help you make informed decisions, ensuring your cannabis journey is both safe and satisfying.