Hemp oatmeal could supercharge your mornings and help you bet a healthier start to 2019.

With fresh New Year’s resolutions, many of us have pledged to start healthier habits. So, if you’re doing your due diligence to finally start eating healthier, you’ve come to the perfect place.

Today we’re giving you a simple recipe that fuses the nutritional goodness of oats with the superfood capacities of hemp and the benefits of CBD. We’ll also explain some of the health benefits from eating oats and hemp.

BRING THE BENEFITS OF HEMP AND OATS TOGETHER IN HEMP OATMEAL

Oats are some of the healthiest grains available. They provide health benefits like weight loss, lower blood sugar, and even reduce the risk of heart disease. Having a balanced nutrient composition, oats are high in fiber and carbs, and are loaded with many important vitamins and minerals. Only half a cup of oats contains 51 grams of carbohydrates, 13 grams of protein, 5 grams of fat, 8 grams of fiber, with only 303 calories! This makes oats a super nutrient-dense food, providing you with a good ratio of nutrition to calories. In addition, oats are rich in antioxidants, can lower cholesterol levels, and lowers blood sugar. To add on to all of that, oats are very satiating and don’t require a lot to make you feel full.

Hemp, of course, is high in plant-based protein, contain good fats, and are also nutrient-dense. One ounce of hemp seeds contains nine grams of protein, twelve grams of fat, and two grams of fiber. It also contains all twenty amino acids and all nine of the essential amino acids which our bodies do not produce naturally. Hemp is also extremely easy to incorporate into your diet through the use of hemp hearts (shelled hemp seeds) and hemp oil. I commonly sprinkle hemp hearts into my food and smoothies; you can even mix chia and flax seeds with hemp hearts to create a trifecta of plant-based nutrition.

CBD offers a wide-range of health benefits as well, most notably it’s anti-inflammatory properties and the calming effect it can have on your body. Coming in as an oil or tincture, it’s easily incorporated into liquids in your dishes or even in your water.

MINISTRY OF HEMP’S ULTIMATE HEMP OATMEAL RECIPE

Serves: 1

Prep time: 5 minutes

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup of oats
• 1 cup of almond milk
• 1 tablespoon brown-sugar
• 1 tablespoon shelled hemp hearts
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• 1 tablespoon flax seeds
• Fruit or berries and additional hemp hearts as a garnish
• Your favorite CBD tincture

Preparation

• Add all dry ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl
• Microwave for 2 minutes on high setting
• Top with more hemp seeds and mix in CBD tincture
• Can also top with fruits such as blueberries, bananas, or strawberries

Editor’s Note: Our sparkling CBD cocktail recipe marks our third collaboration with John Korkidis, better known as Chron Vivant. It’s also a chance for us to wish all of our readers a very Happy New Year! 

Looking for other “elevated” drinks to share on a special occasion? Try Chron Vivant CBD spiced cider or these other CBD cocktail recipes. -KO

On New Year’s I typically start my night with a glass of something sparkling. But instead of simply reaching for champagne, I like to challenge myself to be a bit more creative seeing as we are celebrating another trip around the sun.

This riff on a lower ABV (alcohol by volume) sparkling cocktail is elevated by the addition of a full-spectrum CBD tincture to help get the party started. The flavonoids and terpenoids found in most high quality CBD tinctures play well with the tart cranberry and sweet citrus notes and are easily washed down by the sparkling wine.

Elegant and perfect for any celebration, this dead simple champagne cocktail only contains a few simple ingredients and takes less than a minute to build.

And if you’re looking to save some money after all of your holiday shopping, you can easily substitute an Italian prosecco or Spanish cava in place of the traditional French bubbly in this recipe (you don’t need to use the good stuff when making sparkling cocktails).

Celebrate responsibly and be sure to tag your NYE cocktails: #ChronVivant #Hempgrams

RECIPE: CRANBERRY SPARKLING CBD COCKTAIL

Serves: 1
Prep time: 5 min

Ingredients

• ½ oz ​orange liqueur (Cointreau or triple sec work well)
• ½ oz lemon juice
• 2.5 oz ​cranberry juice
• 2.5 oz Champagne (or any sparkling wine)
• 3-4 drops of full spectrum CBD tincture

Garnish: Lemon twist

Preparation

• Pre-mix the spirit and juice and chill in the refrigerator the night before serving (do not add the champagne yet).
• When you are ready to serve, add the chilled liqueur and cranberry juice to a champagne glass or coupe.
• Top with Champagne and add three to four drops of your favorite CBD tincture.
• Garnish with a lemon twist and serve.

Editor’s Note: This CBD hot cocoa recipe is our second collaboration with John Korkidis, better known as Chron Vivant. Don’t miss his CBD spiced cider recipe and our other CBD cocktails and non-alcoholic CBD drinks. -KO

Nothing is more comforting than a cup of hot cocoa and nothing quite hugs the soul like a broad spectrum of cannabinoids. So, there may be no better way to spend a cold winter’s day than snuggled up to a crackling fire with with a mug full of CBD hot cocoa. And if you don’t have a fireplace, this recipe will make you feel like you do.

Hemp-derived cannabinoids and terpenes enhance the spices and bitter chocolate notes. Plus, the added fat of the milk and whipped cream helps increase the bioavailability of the drink.

Fun Fact: The first chocolate beverage is believed to have been created by the Mayan peoples around 2000 years ago, and much like cannabis, the cocoa beverage was an essential part of Aztec culture. I wonder if they ever mixed the two?

RECIPE: CBD HOT COCOA

Serves: 1
Prep time: 5 min

Ingredients

• 1 oz dark chocolate
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup whole organic milk
• 2 tablespoons organic granulated sugar (optional)
• 1 pinch of cinnamon
• 1 pinch sea salt
• 2-3 drops of full spectrum CBD tincture

Garnish: Whipped cream or marshmallows and a candy cane

Preparation

• In a small saucepan, mix the chocolate, cocoa powder and 1/2 cup of milk over low heat.
• Stir continuously until the chocolate is completely melted. Add the remaining milk, a dash of cinnamon, and a dash of sea salt.
• Stir in organic sugar to taste and add a few drops of the CBD tincture of your choice.
• Pour CBD hot cocoa into your favorite mug and top with whipped cream or marshmallows.
• Take a candy cane and place in a ziplock bag. Gently crush the candy cane with a mallet or similar object and sprinkle the remaining candy cane bits on top of your whipped cream or marshmallows.

We’ve put together a quick guide to eating hemp for breakfast, so you can start your most important meal of the day with this nutritional powerhouse.

Hemp hearts and CBD oil are interesting ingredients, in that they are really easy to incorporate to your everyday foods. With hemp hearts, you’ll see it’s a simple additive to the dishes. It’s as easy as putting them into a batter, or even just sprinkling them on top of the dish. With the CBD oil, it’s slightly more difficult to incorporate into your dishes but we’ll give you some simple tips.

HEMP FOR BREAKFAST: THE BENEFITS OF ADDING HEMP & CBD TO YOUR MORNING

Hemp is great addition to so many dishes. It will provide you with all of the essential amino acids and is a major source for plant-based protein. The best part is that hemp is extremely easy to incorporate into your diet. You can simply sprinkle hemp hearts (hulled hemp seeds) on top of your meals like salads or rice bowls or throw it into your blender to infuse your protein-shakes with hemp power. We recently looked at how hemp is great for keto diets and explained how to make your own hemp milk. However, hemp is an easy addition to almost any diet.

CBD can also be incorporated into your mornings. Not to be confused with THC, the main cannabinoid compound in psychoactive cannabis, these ingredients are completely legal and will not get you high. CBD can ease symptoms of pain and anxiety and generally create a more balanced day. CBD can be found as oils, extracts, tinctures and even edibles. There are even CBD breakfast bars! You can even mix it into your morning coffee, if these recipes don’t appeal.

Since CBD is a liquid, you have to incorporate it into other liquids used. Cannabinoids also bind with fats in cooking. The easiest way to cook with CBD is to infuse the supplement into things like butter, maple syrup, and even into your cooking oil. This process is generally easy, and you can even make it ahead of time. We used Meta Hemp CBD oil for these test recipes (see our Meta Hemp review here!) but you can use any quality CBD oil you prefer.

Below are three of our favorite recipes incorporating hemp & CBD!

PANCAKES WITH CBD-INFUSED MAPLE SYRUP

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of your choice of pancake batter
• Full spectrum CBD oil
• ½ cup of pure maple syrup
• Non-stick spray

Directions:

1. With this recipe, you’ll want to first make your batter to have it done so you can prepare everything else. Depending on your pancake batter, you might need to add eggs and milk, but sometimes all you’ll need is water.
2. When stirring, make sure to stir until the batter is smooth and all of the lumps are gone. If you’re adding milk, do it slowly as you stir. This will make your pancakes extra fluffy.
3. To make the CBD infused maple syrup, pour the syrup into a small saucepan and heat on low. After it’s brought up to temperature, add your desired amount of CBD/Hemp oil.
4. Continue heating on low for about 5 minutes and set aside.
5. To make pancakes, it helps to make a pancake assembly station, with batter to the left, the pan in front of you, and your serving plate to the right.
6. Spray non-stick spray and then pour batter until you get the desired size of pancake. Every minute or so, continuously check the bottom until it’s golden brown. Once it’s cooked, flip the pancake to cook the other side. Again, continuously check so you don’t overcook the pancake.

After that, you’re done in creating your delicious pancake with CBD-infused maple syrup! You can eat it as is, or add things like hemp hearts, berries, nuts, and whipped cream to supercharge the dish.

THE ULTIMATE CBD EGG SCRAMBLE

Ingredients:

• Four eggs
• ¼ cup of milk
• ¼ stick of butter
• Spinach/Kale
• Full spectrum CBD oil
• Handful of grape tomatoes
• ¼ Large Onion, chopped
• Salt, Pepper, Chili Flakes, Smoked Paprika to taste

Directions:

This is an awesome recipe if you’re short on time, and you want to make a quick & easy breakfast scramble to start your day off right!

1. We start by preparing vegetables. Quickly chop onions, ready spinach and grape tomatoes. Set these aside.
2. Heating up your pan with butter over a medium heat. Add CBD/Hemp Oil with the butter. While we wait for the pan to get up to temperature, we’ll prepare our eggs.
3. Whip four eggs in a small bowl until they are uniform and have a little bit of foam around the edges. Mix in the milk while you whip your eggs. This allows for a fluffier and creamier omelet.
4. Once the eggs are whipped and vegetables ready, make sure to have your spices nearby.
5. With the pan up to temperature, we’ll add in our vegetables first. Cook for approximately 2-3 minutes.
6. After the vegetables have cooked for a little bit, add the eggs and start to scramble them.

Making scrambled eggs is fairly easy, but make sure to not overcook the eggs! The cooking process should only take about a minute or so and be sure to keep the ingredients constantly moving with your spatula.

HEMP BREAKFAST PARFAIT

Ingredients:

• ½ cup of yogurt
• Granola
• Your choice of berry (blackberry, blueberry, raspberry, etc.)
• Honey
• Hemp hearts

This is the easiest of all the recipes, simply gather all the ingredients and stack them in a bowl! You can add to this recipe by adding in flax seeds and chia seeds with the hemp hearts to create a trifecta of awesome plant based nutrition!

 

DISCOVER THE TOP CBD BRANDS

The market is getting saturated with many different CBD brands. We’ve compared the top brands to help you with your decision. Check it out.

We’re excited to introduce Ministry of Hemp readers to Chron Vivant and share his delicious CBD mulled apple cider recipe. We thought we’d start with a brief Q&A about his work and the art of hemp-infused cocktails. -Kit

A Q&A WITH CHRON VIVANT

Kit O’Connell, Editor in Chief at Ministry of Hemp: How did you get into making elevated cocktails? Was there a steep learning curve?

John Korkidis, a.k.a. @ChronVivant: Little known fact: I spent most of my 20’s living and working in China as a creative. During my time there I cut my teeth in various agency roles and had the honor of working closely with artists like Ai Weiwei in his Beijing studio.

I actually gained my appreciation for mixology during my time in China. I had a few friends who opened up some of the first cocktail bars in Beijing. They are the ones I credit for acquainting me with properly constructed classics and riffs. Also, because of proximity, Beijing had some fantastic Japanese whiskey bars where I gained a true appreciation for quality spirits, attentive service, custom hand-carved ice, and technique-driven mixology programs.

When I first got to San Francisco, I found this type of experience and quality execution surprisingly lacking. (These days, though, the drink scene has definitely caught up). In addition, I wasn’t used to paying $16 for a classic cocktail that was not properly executed, so I started to experiment with building the base of my favorite drinks at home.

I focus on education and do my best to make things approachable for home chefs, apartment bartenders, and expert mixologists alike. Like anything in life, practice makes perfect. But getting started is not as hard as one might think.

MoH: What are some of your recipes you make most?

CV: Typically the drinks I feature are more mood enhancing than medicinal. However, I provide basic education and best practices for making all sorts of infusions. So depending on one’s particular needs, responsible adults (in legal states) have the ability to manufacture quality products affordably in their own home and use them how they see fit.

The recipes I make the most leverage CBD and act to enhance relaxation. I love classic cocktails like old-fashioneds but I’m also a sucker for an egg white sour, so these are the drinks I make most at home.

I personally have found that micro-dosing cannabinoids works for me. But in regards to traditional cocktails and mocktails, it’s common to have more than one. So it’s important that when creating recipes, dosing takes that into account. Also, I look at cannabis as just another ingredient and never try to make it the focal point. As you know, it’s important to get the balance right; it takes complex flavors and ingredients coming together to make a great drink. And it’s no different when making a canna-beverage.

MOH: What do you think people need to know about CBD drinks & cocktails? Any common misconceptions?

CV: Definitely lot’s of common misconceptions. When people hear cannabis cocktail often they assume that these drinks are going to get you high. To avoid any negative synergistic effects, I never recommend combining psychoactive cannabis with alcohol.

Chron Vivant is all about promoting responsible consumption and typically creates recipes that feature either CBD cocktails (low ABV) or non-alcoholic THC drink alternatives (no ABV).

Another thing for people to keep in mind is that everyone responds differently to ingesting cannabis. Even experienced users should exercise caution when consuming medicated infusions and follow the golden rule of ”going slow and keeping the dosage low.”

ENHANCE THE AUTUMN VIBES WITH CBD MULLED APPLE CIDER

We are already a month into fall and that means the holiday season is fast approaching.

It seems that once Halloween arrives, time speeds up and New Year’s Eve is here before we know it – a phenomenon known by some as Hallowthanksmas.

I find a good way to slow things down is to break up my daily routine and take a moment to catch my breath and reflect with a fall-themed CBD cocktail or non-alcoholic CBD beverage.

Croptober is one of my favorite times of year for ingredients. It’s period of transition, when the colors are still changing, the weather is shifting, and savory fruits and warm spices flood local markets.

As soon as I start to see apples, persimmons, and pumpkins popping up, that’s when I get the signal that the change in seasons truly is here and I know it’s time to make a batch of my signature mulled apple cider.

This easy-to-make, and even easier-to-drink, beverage is perfect for warming up the soul and makes an excellent batch concoction for your next seasonal party.

The addition of CBD is sure to comfort the body and relax the mind. And since CBD is a non-psychoactive cannabinoid, you won’t need to worry worry about experiencing any negative synergistic effects when combined with alcohol. But of course, this fall-themed CBD cocktail can easily become a non-alcoholic mocktail by simply negating the booze.

SPIKED CBD MULLED APPLE CIDER RECIPE

Yield:

• 8-10 servings

Equipment:

• Large pot or slow cooker
• Ladle

Prep time:

• 10 minutes

Cook time:

• 2.5 hours

Total:

• 2-3 hours

Ingredients:

• 2 quarts organic apple cider
• 5 cinnamon sticks (plus more for garnishes)
• 1 large organic orange
• 2 tablespoons whole cloves
• Bourbon or rum of your choice (optional)
• CBD tincture (see our choices for top CBD brands)

Preparation:

• Add organic apple cider into a large pot or slow cooker
• Place whole cinnamon sticks into the liquid
• Embed cloves into the rind of an orange and place orange into the cider
• Cook on low until the spices really start to come through and the cider is hot (about 2.5-3 hours)

Serving:

• Carefully ladle cider directly from your pot or slow cooker into heat resistant cups
• Add one ounce of bourbon or rum (optional)
• Add 3-4 drops of your favorite CBD tincture
• Place a cinnamon stick in each glass to garnish and serve

 

DISCOVER THE TOP CBD BRANDS

The market is getting saturated with many different CBD brands. We’ve compared the top brands to help you with your decision. Check it out.

CBD golden milk is the perfect way to make a healthy drink even better.

We’ve already looked at CBD cocktails, but you don’t need liquor to enjoy the relaxing benefits of mixing CBD into your favorite beverages.

The most recent beverage trend hitting major coastal cities doesn’t use alcohol as a main ingredient. Instead, the main ingredient is cannabidiol, the non-psychoactive ingredient in cannabis. The most important thing to be aware of when you’re ingesting a CBD drink is how your body reacts to edible CBD. Generally, ingesting CBD orally takes longer to take effect, meaning you’ll be on the safer side sticking to just one drink per hour.

The benefits of drinking a CBD-infused drink include relaxation, reduced anxiety, reduced inflammation, decreased joint pain, better sleep and nausea relief. CBD golden milk takes a drink that thousands of people love and adds the powerful effects of CBD. These kinds of beverages also provide you with a discreet method of ingesting the compound, and deliver a slower onset as opposed to vaping CBD. If you’re looking for a less invasive way to enjoy CBD, we recommend sticking to edibles and drinks.

Read on for our CBD golden milk recipe and some of our other favorite CBD drinks.

CBD GOLDEN MILK RECIPE

This tasty drink provides several health benefits. Turmeric, commonly known as “golden milk” is believed to support our immune system, digestion and even liver function. Served hot, this beverage provides a boost in natural antioxidants, which aid in protecting your heart health and also have the potential to lower your risk of infections.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of water
• 1 inch ginger root
• 1 inch turmeric root or 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon of coconut oil
• 1 cup of hemp milk
• 1 pinch of black pepper
• 2 teaspoons of honey
• 2 teaspoons of CBD oil

Instructions:

1. Heat the milk
2. Add all of the ingredients to a blender
3. Pour into a mug
4. Enjoy!

You can store this recipe in the refrigerator.

CBD LEMONADE SPRITZER WITH BASIL

Enjoy a refreshing and calming lemonade spritzer. It’s perfect to make for social events or even as a drink to enjoy with dinner. Fans of spritzers and lemonade will appreciate the invigorating flavors they know and love, all while receiving the benefits of CBD.

Ingredients:

• 6-8 lemons
• 1 cup of sugar
• 5 cups of water
• 1 bunch of fresh basil
• 1 cup of seltzer
• 1-3 teaspoons of CBD tincture

Directions:

For the Simple Sugar:

1. Heat one cup of water and one cup of sugar over medium heat in a small pan
2. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved and let it cool completely
3. Juice the lemons
4. Mix the remaining 4 cups of water, lemon juice, CBD tincture and simple syrup

To Serve:

Place a few basil leaves at the bottom of your glass. Fill ¾ of the way with lemonade, and finish it off with your desired amount of seltzer water. Garnish with a slice of lemon.

FROTHY CBD MILK RECIPE

This easy-to-make recipe puts a twist on a classic warm beverage. If the basic ingredients are staples in your kitchen, you’ll always be able to whip up this CBD treat. With the colder seasons right around the corner, now is the time to master this recipe and serve it to your guests.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of milk
• 2 teaspoons of CBD oil
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 pinch of sea salt
• 2 teaspoons of honey or sweetener of your choice

Instructions:

1. In a saucepan over low heat, mix the honey, milk, vanilla extract, salt and preferred amount of CBD
2. Use a whisk to blend the ingredients and heat until warm
3. Serve warm, or pour over ice for a cold beverage

 

DISCOVER THE TOP CBD BRANDS

The market is getting saturated with many different CBD brands. We’ve compared the top brands to help you with your decision. Check it out.

Hemp Milk is a powerhouse of nutrition, and it’s so easy to make.

If you’re a busy person, eating healthy, well-balanced meals tailored to your current diet can be very difficult. Lots of us are preparing food in advance, to help us survive the oncoming assault of tasks that will burden us throughout the week. Even so, we still need some fast, nutritious add-ins.

Hemp milk is a simple and tasty addition to almost any diet. You can use it to add nutrition to everyday foods. Hemp milk is great in protein shakes, you can substitute it for dairy milk in cereal, or simply drink it directly with a little added honey.

Below we outline the advantages of adding hemp milk into your diet, and how to make Ministry of Hemp’s version!

WHAT ARE THE NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS OF HEMP MILK?

Hemp is a superfood among superfoods. The little shelled seed is easily digestible, nutrient rich, and is a tasty addition to pretty much everything. Hemp seeds contain all 10 essential amino acids, which are highly-important because our bodies cannot produce them. In addition to the Omega 3 & 6 Fatty Acids, the seeds contain plant-based fats, antioxidants, fiber, and even natural chlorophyll. On top of all, the seeds are extremely easy to digest, requiring very low amounts of energy to digest. As we’ve written about before, hemp is perfect for keto diets.

This is what makes hemp milk so special, because it carries all the nutritional benefits of hemp seeds in a different form. Hemp milk makes it even easier to consume this little superseed.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR OWN HEMP MILK

All you’ll need is the following ingredients:

• Shelled hemp seeds, also known as hemp hearts (1 Cup)
• Water (3 cups)
• Salt (a pinch)
• Sweetener (to taste)

We like to use pitted dates or organic raw honey to sweeten our hemp milk. Add as much as you want for these ingredients, as it depends on your taste. There’s lot of other possible ingredients, but these are key. Everything else added will be for flavor and personal taste, which is the best part!

Step 1: Put the shelled hemp seeds (1 cup) into your blender.

Since we’re using shelled hemp seeds, there is no need for us to soak the seeds or strain them after blending. I highly suggest using this since it is easier to make and has virtually no mess.

Step 2: Put the water into the blender.

This step is important for the thickness of your milk. I like to use a ratio of 3:1, water to hemp seeds. If you would like a thicker milk, use less water, and vice versa. Keep in mind that the more you make hemp milk (trust me you’ll want to make it all the time) the better you’ll become balancing the ratio.

Step 3: Add the salt for taste and as a preservative. Add your chosen sweetener and any other optional ingredients.

Step 4: Blend the ingredients together for 20-30 seconds.

And that’s it!

SOME FUN WAYS TO CUSTOMIZE YOUR HEMP MILK

Aside from honey and pitted dates, you have a plethora of options for flavoring. You can use vanilla & cinnamon for a horchata-inspired milk. We’ve tried chocolate syrup for chocolate hemp milk, and you can even use strawberry syrup for strawberry flavored milk.

As with any recipe, keep practicing and work to make it your own. And in no time, you’ll be a hemp milk master!

Thanks to our reader, Marjorie H., for suggesting this article!

Looking for amazing CBD cocktail recipes for your next party?

We all love the idea of serving fancy cocktails to our friends, but why not take your fun to the next level?

And the best part is that instead of having a wretched hangover the day after, some people report that adding CBD to their cocktails reduces that terrible feeling.

If you think that’s too good to be true, this guide might just take that edge off for you. We’ll begin by giving you a basic idea about what makes CBD cocktails special and then move on to some simple CBD infused cocktail recipes.

WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS OF CBD COCKTAILS?

The effect of the intake of CBD infused cocktails varies for different people. But generally, it is one of euphoria without the irking sense of anxiety caused by regular cannabis. CBD (Cannabidiol) is usually known to have a calming effect, relaxing the senses from other physical discomforts.

With CBD, you get to enjoy Disneyland’s “It’s a Small World” ride without freaking out and jumping off the carriage.

According to bartenders across the trendiest cities in the country, New York, Los Angeles, Portland – you name it; CBD in cocktails enhances the drinks’ flavor. This supplement is also known to reduce inflammation and anxiety, and that effect extends to cocktails infused with CBD.

Some people who have experimented with CBD cocktails also claim it reduces the negative effects of intoxication, though there isn’t any scientific research to support this yet. There is some evidence that cannabinoids can reduce nausea.

Don’t get us wrong: you’ll still get sick if you overindulge, but CBD could help you enjoy your drinks a little more.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT CBD COCKTAILS

Q. How is CBD oil used in food and beverages?

A. CBD is used in food products and beverages, usually in the form of CBD oils and tinctures. CBD tinctures are alcohol based. Adding CBD isolates or syrup infusions to your drinks are also a great way to customize your experience.

Q. What’s the difference between CBD oil and CBD tinctures?

A.  CBD oils and tinctures affect the taste of cocktails differently.Unfortunately, these two terms are frequently used interchangeably today, but the difference is the ingredients: CBD oil is oil-based, while tinctures infuse CBD oil into an alcohol base.

Oils are either infused or drizzled on the drinks. CBD oils provide that intense hemp smell and concentrated flavor. But there is a chance that oil bases may get trapped in the layers or drop to the bottom, eventually getting left behind in the glass.

Tinctures, on the other hand, blend in more smoothly with other alcohols to give you that complete experience.

Q. How does the alcohol content of the cocktail effect CBD?

A. The ABV index, or ‘alcohol by volume’, measures the amount of alcohol in a given volume of alcoholic beverage. The more the alcohol content in your cocktail, the lesser your chances are of noticing the effects of CBD. But, if you go overboard with the CBD content, you might end up getting too sleepy for the better part of the time.

Q. What’s the ideal CBD dosage to use for cocktails?

A. The CBD dosage varies from one person to another, which can also depend on your preference. A high dosage of CBD oil, when mixed with alcohol, tends to make you sleepy and intoxicated. However, you won’t feel the effects of CBD if your drink has more alcohol in it. So, for a starter, it would be better to balance the mixture with a lower dose of CBD oil, and you can increase the dosage over time.

CBD COCKTAIL RECIPES

Now for the fun part — the recipes! When it comes to infusing CBD with your cocktails, the world is your oyster. There are so many permutations that you can try!

You can actually create some of them with just a basic bar set-up from home. Aside from the ingredients, you only need two things — creativity and the desire for something smooth and delicious!

CBD-Infused Green Derby

Doctors agree that having fruit does wonders for your body. While cocktails aren’t the recommended way to do this, with grapefruit juice and lemon juice, this CBD cocktail is a great way to at least tell yourself you’re doing something healthy.

Ingredients:

• 1 oz. CBD Infused Bourbon
• 0.5 oz. lemon juice
• 1 oz. grapefruit juice
• 0.5 oz. honey syrup

Procedure:

• Pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Shake until ingredients are well-combined.
• Prepare a Collins glass with ice. Pour in the mixture.
• Add soda water and top the concoction with fresh grapefruit.

CBD-Infused Cosmopolitan

Want to live your best Sex in the City life? Spice up the regular ‘ol Cosmopolitan with CBD syrup. You don’t need Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, or Samantha to get a taste of New York City.

Ingredients:

• 2 oz. vodka
• 1 oz. cranberry juice cocktail
• 1/4 oz. CBD syrup
• 3/4 oz. fresh lime juice
• 3/4 oz. Triple sec
• Orange twist, to garnish

Procedure:

1. Mix the vodka, cranberry juice, CBD syrup, lime juice, and the Triple sec in a cocktail shaker.
2.  Add ice. Shake vigorously for about 20 seconds, until the shaker becomes very cold.
3. Strain the concoction into a martini glass using a strainer or a slotted spoon.
4. Garnish it up with the orange twist.

CBD Mint Julep

Level up your CBD drink with this Mint Julep! Quench your thirst with this minty flavor as it eases your stress and tension. Don’t settle for less ‘cause you’ll surely include this in your list of favorite drinks.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 ounces bourbon
• 1/2 ounce simple syrup
• 2 – 8 mint leaves + extra for garnish
• 15 mg CBD tincture

Procedure:

1. Muddle up the leaves and the simple syrup along with the CBD Tincture together in a chilled julep cup.
2. Add the bourbon and top it off with pebble ice.
3. Swizzle and top with more ice.
4. Garnish with additional leaves or fresh mint sprigs.

CBD COCKTAILS ARE EASY & FUN

Creating a CBD infused cocktail is not as daunting as you think it would be. It may take a little bit of practice, but anyone can follow the recipes above! Adding CBD is a fun way to level up your drinking experience. It doesn’t hurt that these cocktails provide everything you need for a good night out without the hangover.

Are you ready for an amazing time? Let us know how your CBD-infused concoctions turn out!

Enjoy!

 

DISCOVER THE TOP CBD BRANDS

The market is getting saturated with many different CBD brands. We’ve compared the top brands to help you with your decision. Check it out.

CBD coffee could be the perfect morning treat to get your day started without the worst parts of the caffeine buzz.

Did you know that 83 percent of Americans drink coffee regularly? In a fast paced world, with the pressures of life pulling us down, it is no wonder we need coffee, but also carry anxiety. Not only does coffee help wake you up in the morning, but it actually has more lot of health benefits than you might realize. However, adding a little CBD oil can increase those benefits even more.

If you haven’t tried the blend of coffee and CBD oil, get ready to set your anxiety on snooze and energize your moods with a CBD latte that you’ll want to try tomorrow morning. Read on for a favorite recipe and more about the benefits of CBD coffee.

WHY DOES CBD COFFEE FEEL SO ENERGIZING?

Simply adding a dose of CBD oil to your coffee can give you increased health benefits for your body, mind, and spirit. Both coffee and CBD oil can help you feel better, and when combined, they offer you more than just the average coffee!

Benefits of coffee

Most people drink coffee to wake them up in the morning, give them a little burst of energy during the day, or a pick me up after a stressful day at work. Coffee gets a bad rap, but it is actually a healthy choice. If you are an avid coffee drinker, you are already getting many coffee benefits. If you aren’t, check out what coffee has to offer you:

• Coffee is a natural antioxidant. Coffee is a natural antioxidant for your body. Although our body can get antioxidants from fruits and veggies, we absorb more in our daily cup of coffee.
• Coffee is good for your liver. People who drink at least 1 cup of coffee a day are 20 percent less likely to get liver cirrhosis
• Coffee improves brain function. Whether you didn’t get enough sleep or you just need your morning coffee before you talk to anyone, coffee really does improve brain function. You have increased reaction time, attention, logical reasoning, and vigilance.
• Smelling coffee relieves anxiety. You know that beautiful smell of brewing coffee that just calms you?! It really does relieve a lot of your anxiety just by smelling it.

Benefits of CBD oil

CBD oil is one of several naturally-occurring compounds in the cannabis plant known as cannabinoids. Most CBD oil supplements come from industrial hemp. Although hemp and psychoactive cannabis (“marijuana”) come from different forms of the same plant, the two are very different. CBD oil has many medical benefits which include:

• Natural pain relief. CBD oil has natural pain relief and anti-inflammatory properties. Using CBD oil daily, can help relieve stiffness, joint pain, and aches throughout the day.
• Relieve symptoms of epilepsy. Doctors everywhere are now using CBD oil to treat epilepsy and seizures not only in adults, but in children.
• Reduces anxiety. CBD oil is a natural way to reduce anxiety behaviors caused from panic disorder, PTSD, general anxiety disorder, social anxiety disorder, and OCD with no adverse side effects
• Relieves migraines and headaches. Stress and tension can wreak havoc on our bodies in many ways. CBD oil helps relieve both migraines and headaches and keep them away.
• Promotes healthy sleep. Taking CBD oil daily helps get your body in a regular sleep habit which reduces stress and increases brain function. Take a serving before bed to help with insomnia and get your body into the REM sleep you need.

Benefits of combining CBD Oil and coffee

When you mix the benefits of coffee and the benefits of CBD oil, you get an incredible morning regime that is good for your whole body! It really is a match made in heaven. Although coffee has many benefits, the caffeine can increase stress hormones called cortisol. However, CBD oil can cause drowsiness in some people. Therefore, when you combine the two to create CBD coffee, you get the best of both worlds.

• Increases energy while decreasing anxiety. While coffee increases your mood and energy, CBD oil relieves anxiety and stress.
• CBD coffee could boost your mood. Both CBD oil and coffee boost your overall mood by increasing your serotonin levels (happy hormone).
• Both have antioxidant properties. Antioxidants are needed to get rid of toxins in your body. They protect our DNA and cells from damage, aid with cell regeneration and aging; The more antioxidants, the better.
• CBD coffee is good for your brain. As coffee increases your brain function, CBD oil protects your neurons from degeneration in your brain. Therefore, coffee and CBD oil together could be even better for your mind.

RECIPE: PEPPERMINT CBD LATTE

If you are ready to get the best of both worlds, you are going to love this Peppermint CBD Latte recipe:

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup of hot coffee
• ¼ cup hot milk
• York Peppermint Patties
• ½ dropper Full Spectrum CBD Tincture

Directions:

1. Unwrap Peppermint Patties and break into little pieces.
2. Prepare coffee in a coffee maker as you would normally.
3. Heat ½ cup of milk in the microwave for 2-minutes
4. Use an electric mixer or milk steamer to froth the milk. Mix until it reaches desired frothiness.
5. Pour ¾ cup of hot coffee into a mug.
6. Add ½ dropper (0.75 ml) Full Spectrum CBD Oil Tincture to coffee. Mix well.
7. Using spoon to hold back froth, pour hot milk into coffee.
8. Top coffee with the remaining froth to make it a latte.
9. Top your latte with the crumbled York Peppermint Patties.
10. Optional: Melt York Peppermint Patties in the microwave and add to hot coffee for more flavor.
11. Enjoy your CBD coffee!

CBD COFFEE IS AN EASY, RELAXING WAY TO START YOUR DAY

While we hope you’ll give our CBD latte a try, making CBD coffee doesn’t have to be complicated. Adding a little flavorful drop of CBD oil to your morning coffee is a simple step to start your day out healthier and happier! Of course, there’s no reason you can’t add it to your afternoon pick-me-up cup, too. Either way, it’s a great step in the right direction.

Have you tried a Peppermint CBD Latte or made your own CBD coffee drink? How did you like it? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

 

DISCOVER THE TOP CBD BRANDS

The market is getting saturated with many different CBD brands. We’ve compared the top brands to help you with your decision. Check it out.

Sampling Carla Boyd’s cooking, including her hemp pesto aioli, was one of the highlights of our recent visit to Denver.

Boyd is the founder of Hemp Way Foods, a Colorado company. People lined up to sample her hemp burgers, vegan hemp nachos, and hemp tacos at the NoCo Hemp Expo last month. After we tried her food, we knew we wanted to find out more and get a few recipes for our readers.

We spoke with Boyd by phone to learn how she discovered hemp. She also shared two of her recipes, which you’ll find below: her famous hemp pesto aioli and hemp tacos.

HEMP WAY FOODS CREATED AFTER HEMP HEALED ILLNESS

Boyd began investigating hemp as a food source because of severe digestive problems. Her quality of life suffered, and nothing else seemed to help.

“I was a walking skeleton at the time,” she described. “I wasn’t absorbing any nutrients.”

Boyd was already involved with hemp advocacy, “but I had never really focused on the food side.”

Further research into hemp’s nutritional benefits led to the creation of her first product, a hemp burger.

“People started asking for it and wanted to buy it,” she recalled. “I never planned to have a food company; it’s almost like the company chose me.”

Hemp seeds are rich in antioxidants and natural anti-inflammatory substances. Hemp protein is also one of the most easily available and digestible proteins in the plant world. Boyd believes all of this contributed to making hemp easier for her body to process and use.

As Boyd’s health improved, the company grew with her. Four years later, Hemp Way Foods offers both the burger and hemp crumbles, which come in both original and sriracha pepper flavors. Both the hemp burger and hemp crumbles are vegan and free from common allergens like gluten, corn and soy. Hemp Way products are found in about a dozen restaurants and retail locations in Colorado, with plans to go national in the works.

Along the way, Boyd received the enthusiastic support of other hemp industry advocates and entrepreneurs.

“In the hemp world, there’s definitely a camaraderie,” she said.

HEMP PESTO AIOLI RECIPE

Recipes by Carla Boyd, Hemp Way Foods

Ingredients:

• 1 12 oz. jar mayonnaise
• 1 bunch fresh basil
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup hemp hearts (any brand)
• 1 tsp. sriracha for added kick
• 1 tsp. lemon juice or apple cider vinegar

Directions: De-stem basil leaves. Blend all ingredients together and refrigerate. Hemp pesto aioli can be used as a sauce or spread in almost any dish.

HEMP TACOS WITH HEMP WAY FOODS’ CRUMBLES

Ingredients:

• 1 8oz package of Hemp Way Foods hemp burger crumbles
• 1 tsp. Cumin powder
• 1 tsp. Coriander
• 1 tsp. Fennel seeds
• 2 cloves garlic chopped

Directions: Defrost crumbles in a skillet with small amount of oil to crisp (1 tsp.). Stir all ingredients together and toast in the pan. Toast crumbles to desired crispness (about 8-10 minutes). Serve in corn tortillas with hemp pesto aioli on top.