With Halloween less than two weeks away, we thought it appropriate to list some of the fun and exciting tricks you can incorporate CBD into your favorite treats! Whether you like warm freshly baked cookies or smooth and refreshing beverages, we’ve got you covered! Keep in mind that while CBD is a fantastic herb, it does come with an age restriction. If you do end up making some of these fun treats (which we really hope you do!), be sure to keep them out of reach from children. CBD already made negative headlines in 2019, and we definitely don’t want a repeat of that. For the rest of us who are 18-21 or older, check out this fantastic list of CBD infusions to make your Halloween more festive!
Bioavailability of CBD
Before we don our masks and whip up something scary in the kitchen, it’s important to understand the bioavailability of CBD. All CBD products come with an amount of cannabidiol in milligrams. That total mg count of CBD is not the final amount that gets absorbed by our body. In fact, a great deal of the absorption rate depends on the consumption method. Certain edibles like gummies and tincture-infused snacks tend to lose a lot of their potency once they enter your stomach. You can learn more about bioavailability and the types of products with varying absorption rates, but just know that the strength of CBD you consume in cookies, brownies, and other edibles won’t be the total amount your body can use.
Helpful Tip For Cooking With CBD
When CBD oil is heated, it rapidly loses its potency. All CBD oils come in varying strengths, ranging from a mere 200mg to a whopping 2000mg. Regardless of which oil strength you choose to cook with, you’ll end up losing a large amount of that if your cooking temperature is too high. You can choose to keep your oven temperature around 350 degrees, or opt for mixing the oil prior to or just after heating.
Another tip to consider is how much CBD to use in the first place. The amount to use starts with an delightfully simple formula: multiply the recommended dosage of CBD by the number of recipe servings. Most recommended dosages of CBD oil are about 1mL; if the recipe states that it “serves 12”, you’ll need to add in 12mL of CBD to your recipe. Simple, right? Although every individual may have a different tolerance to CBD, it’s safest to stick with this formula. As you become more familiar with using CBD recipes, you can adjust the amount of CBD you incorporate into the recipes as needed.
Lastly, make sure that anyone who consumes your CBD-infused treats doesn’t have any allergies or restrictions concerning the hemp-derived cannabinoid. CBD may have adverse reactions to some individuals using prescription medication. When in doubt, try to avoid consuming any CBD until you’ve had a chance to consult with your primary care physician.
What CBD Oils Should I Use?
If you’re aspiring to create some fantastic treats, it only makes sense to incorporate premium high-quality CBD oils! Here at Erth Wellness, we offer a variety of tinctures that you can easily incorporate into your baked goods, beverages, and literally anything else you can think of. Our broad-spectrum THC-free tincture is great for those looking to steer clear of the THC cannabinoid, while our full-spectrum CBD tincture offers the full benefits of the hemp plant, THC included! If you’re having trouble sleeping, our water-soluble CBD+CBN sleep aid tincture can help you relax to the point where sleep comes more naturally. WHichever tincture you use, you can enjoy peace of mind knowing that you’re consuming a premium product that’s been lab tested by independent third-party labs for purity and potency. Once you’ve made your selection, you’re ready to start whipping up some of these sweet and spooky Halloween treats!
CBD Brownies
It wouldn’t be a party without some good ole’ traditional brownies, but these soft chewy treats come with a special something that even Frankenstien wouldn’t be able to resist. If you’re not keen on starting from scratch, there are several box-recipe brownies that you can use as well.
You’ll need the following ingredients, which we’ve listed neatly for your convenience. This recipe makes 9 brownies, but you can always halve or double the proportions if you need more or less.
10 tbsp melted salted butter
9 droppers CBD oil of your choice (about 9mL)
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup melted milk chocolate chips
1 cup milk chocolate chips
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup granulated sugar
Start off by preheating your oven to the standard 350 degrees. Grease a 9x9 baking pan with cooking spray or line the pan with parchment paper. As the oven preheats, you can start mixing together the wet ingredients. Blend the butter and sugar together until smooth, fold in the eggs and vanilla extract, and pour in the melted chocolate chips. Once the wet ingredients are fully combined, add in the CBD drops as well as the dry ingredients (cocoa powder, salt, and flour). Lastly, add in the unmelted chocolate chips and stir until combined. Pour the brownie mixture into your waiting pan and let it bake for 30 minutes. Be sure to allow enough time for the brownies to cool.
Once the brownies are fully cool, it’s time to get creative! You can pipe icing onto the brownies to make them look a little ghoulish, add a dollop of whipped cream and google eyes to make ghosts, insert half of a cookie to make a tombstone, the possibilities are endless!
CBD Cookies
Mummies, ghosts, and bats are essential additions to Halloween, and these cookies are sure to bring out your inner grave-digger! To make the most out of these adorable sweets, consider getting some cookie cutters for perfect circles, or see if your local grocery store has any Halloween-inspired shapes. This recipe calls for 36 cookies, so rather than adding an overwhelming amount of CBD, you can opt for about half a milligram for cookie, meaning you’ll need to eat two cookies for a full milligram. That shouldn’t be a problem once you taste how delicious these mummy cookies are!
To start, be sure you have the following ingredients on hand:
18 droppers of your preferred CBD oil
12 tsp water
2 sticks unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups confectioner’s sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
½ tsp kosher salt
½ tsp baking soda
Parchment paper for quick and easy cleanup
To start, you’ll need to preheat your oven to 350 degrees. As your oven slowly creeps to the desired temperature, start combining your dry ingredients together: cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, and flour. Once these have been mixed sufficiently, set aside and grab a new bowl for the wet ingredients. Blend the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer, then fold in the eggs one at a time, followed by the CBD drops. Once the mixture is silky smooth, gradually add in the combined dry ingredients until fully blended.
Next, use a rolling pin or sturdy glass to roll the cookie dough onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Carefully use a cookie cutter to create as many cookies as you can fit, but don’t remove the excess dough just yet. Pop the cookies into the fridge for a short 20 minutes, and then remove the excess dough. This helps to make the removal process much easier. Once you’ve removed the excess dough, it’s time to bake! Pop the cookie-lined sheet in the oven for about 12-15 minutes, or until the cookies start to look a bit sandy. Repeat until you’ve used up all of the dough, and allow sufficient time for the cookies to cool.
Once the cookies are fully cool, they’re ready to be iced! You can use a professional icing bag, but I prefer to cut off the corner of a regular plastic food baggie and use that for precise piping. You can use store-bought icing, or make your own by whisking confectioner’s sugar and water together until sticky enough to be drizzled on.
CBD Vampire Cookies
No Halloween party is complete without a blood-sucking vampire, and we’ve got just the cookies to help! If you’re pressed for time, you can grab some pre-made chilled cookie dough from the refrigerated section of your supermarket, but something about homemade cookies always hits the spot!
To make these cookies, you’ll need the following ingredients. The full recipe makes 60 cookies, so again, you can expect about a ½ milligram per cookie for a total of 30mg of CBD. If this seems like a lot, you can opt for halving or even quartering the recipe. The choice is yours!
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ vanilla frosting (try to find a red option)
1 ¾ cups mini marshmallows
48 slivered almonds
Preheat your oven to a cozy 350 degrees. Mix the dry ingredients (baking soda, flour, and salt) together in a mixing bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl, cream the butter, white and brown sugar, and vanilla together until smooth. Fold in the eggs one at a time, followed by the CBD oil. Slowly mix in the combined dry ingredients until cookie dough is fully combined. Finally, add in the chocolate chips! Scoop out heaping teaspoons onto a cookie sheet, being careful not to put them too close together. Bake the cookies for 13-15 minutes and remove from the oven to cool. Once the cookies are completely cool, it’s time to channel your inner vampire!
Carefully cut each cookie in half and layer the bottom of the halves with the red vanilla frosting. Stand the mini marshmallows upright so that they resemble teeth, using additional marshmallows behind the row to reinforce the stability. Gently place the other half of the frosted cookies (frosting side down) onto the marshmallows and insert two almond slivers between the marshmallows so they resemble the famed Dracula’s fangs. If you’re having trouble making the almond slivers stay, you can use a bit of icing to help them stay put.
If you're not a fan of the red frosting or simply can't find it, you can also try frosting the cookies with chocolate icing. Then cut the mini marshmallows in half for an easier time stacking the "teeth."
Conclusion
There are quite a few ways to include CBD into your Halloween festivities, but infusing freshly-baked treats with the hemp-derived cannabinoid is by far one of our favorites! While the bioavailability of CBD decreases drastically when consumed and digested, it’s better than not having any CBD at all. You can add CBD drops into literally anything you bake, but try to lean towards the recipes that don’t top 350 degrees. Anything higher than that will drastically reduce the potency of the CBD. Feel free to browse through online recipe sites, old cookbooks, and cherished family recipes to find new and exciting ways to bring CBD into your kitchen!
In our next article, we’ll be continuing this theme of Halloween-inspired treats, but this time with an exciting twist: cocktails! That’s right, you can now infuse your favorite alcoholic beverages with cannabidiol. Grab your favorite brand of hard liquor and get ready to have a spooky boozy Halloween you never knew you were missing! Until we meet again!
