Making gummies is fun and all, and there are lots of reasons to think the world of edibles begins and ends with Haribo.
It doesn’t.
Recently, I’ve been experimenting with chocolate, the other OTHER great contribution of cannabis to food culture.
It’s easy to think you can just melt a bunch of chocolate chips and add some kind of infused oil (I used MCT oil the first time). And it does work, but they do melt at room temperature. Not like it’s such a big deal to keep them in the fridge or freezer but the goal was to have something shelf stable.
The art of the chocolatier is exacting. It’s one of those things that falls squarely in the realm of pâtissières – it is more science than food, art as much as craft – but has also found a home in the kitchens of aficionados the world over. It is both famimliar and convenient, mysterious and evocative.
Enter cocoa butter and couverture chocolate.
Couverture chocolate is chocolate that contains a higher percentage of cocoa butter (32–39%) than baking or eating chocolate. Think most commercial chocolate bars and chocolate chips. This additional cocoa butter, combined with proper tempering, gives the chocolate more sheen, a firmer snap when broken, and a creamy mellow flavour.
Chocolate is the epitome of industrial food and the modern era. Cocoa beans have been harvested and part of the human experience for at least 5,000 years but didn’t really rise to mass popularity until the industrial revolution when the Swiss figured out how to process and work with chocolate as we know it today. It is intricate and mechanical and entirely industrial. But what joy it brings us! It says I love you, it makes us feel good, it tastes good, and is actually good for us.
The first batch was pretty much just chocolate chips and some lifted butter, the resulting truffles melted in my hand and had to be stored in the refriderator. The second time my procedure was different:
- Bought cacao butter
- Bought the chocolate
- Melted the chocolate and the cacao butter
- Infused the cacao butter
- Blended the two
- Tempered the chocolate
- Molded and decanted
That was the basic procedure. Everything that looks simple isn’t easy. Temperature is an issue. The quality of chocolate comes into play. But then what are you going to do with all that wonderful flower you’ve decarboxylated? There are basically two options – you can infuse the chocolate directly, or you can infuse the coco butter and add it while cooking.
Let’s look at infusing.
Infusing Chocolate with Cannabis Using Cacao Butter
By using cacao butter — the pure fat extracted from cacao beans — as the solvent, you create a seamless marriage of cannabis and chocolate. This method preserves the rich chocolate notes while delivering cannabinoids effectively, thanks to the fat-soluble nature of THC and CBD.
Why cacao butter?
Cacao butter is ideal because it’s a natural partner to chocolate, with a melt-in-the-mouth texture and neutral yet slightly chocolatey taste. Unlike coconut oil or dairy butter, cacao butter allows you to maintain the purity of chocolate’s flavour. Moreover, cacao butter’s fat profile binds well with cannabinoids, ensuring even distribution in the final product. This is what makes it different from using milk chocolate, like that big bag of chocolate chips sitting in the cupboard. It’s also what was available at the bulk food store at the time. f
Selecting your cannabis
Choose cannabis with a profile that complements chocolate’s earthy, sometimes bitter notes. A strain with warm, spicy, or fruity terpenes pairs nicely. Always decarboxylate your cannabis first – this is essential to activate the THC or CBD. I had two kinds of seed chocolate – the first was a plain, unadulterated dark chocolate. The other was orange flavoured.
How to decarboxylate
As always the first step to making any edible is processing your flower through decarboxylation. Here’s the basic process3:
Preheat the oven to 240 F (115 C).
Break cannabis into small pieces and spread evenly on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake for 40 minutes, stirring halfway. Let cool.
Preparing cannabis-infused cacao butter
Ingredients
1 oz (28 g) decarboxylated cannabis
1 lb (454 g) cacao butter, chopped
Cheesecloth or fine mesh bag
Mason jar or heatproof glass container
Double boiler or water bath
Method
Melt cacao butter
In a double boiler, bring water to a gentle simmer. Place chopped cacao butter in the top bowl and stir until fully melted. Avoid overheating; keep temperature below 200 F (93 C). I expedited the process and melted the cocoa nibs in the microwave through short, controlled times.
Combine with cannabis
Add decarboxylated cannabis to the melted cacao butter. Maintain temperature between 160–180 F (71–82 C). Stir gently every 15 minutes to encourage cannabinoid infusion.
Steep
Let mixture infuse for 2 to 3 hours, watching temperature carefully. This extended steep helps extract cannabinoids and terpenes without degrading them.
Strain
Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Line a funnel with cheesecloth and pour infusion through into a clean mason jar. Gently squeeze or press cheesecloth to extract every drop.
Store
Seal the jar and keep it in a cool, dark place. Infused cacao butter will last several months.
Making cannabis chocolate
Ingredients
12 oz (340 g) quality dark chocolate (70% cacao or higher), chopped
4 oz (115 g) cannabis-infused cacao butter
Method
Temper the chocolate
Place 8 oz (225 g) of chocolate and all infused cacao butter in a bowl over simmering water. Stir until melted, smooth, and reaches 115 F (46 C).
Seed to temper
Remove bowl from heat. Stir in remaining 4 oz (115 g) chopped chocolate until temperature lowers to 88–90 F (31–32 C). This helps align cocoa butter crystals, giving chocolate a glossy snap.
Mould or spread
Pour into silicone moulds or spread on a parchment-lined tray. Tap gently to release air bubbles.
Set and store
Let harden at room temperature (ideally around 65 F or 18 C). Once firm, transfer to an airtight container. Store in a cool, dark place — not the fridge — to maintain texture.
Dosing considerations
Potency depends on the starting cannabis. If your flower contains 20 per cent THC, 1 oz (28 g) has about 5,600 mg THC. With extraction loss, you might retain 70 to 80 per cent, so roughly 4,000 to 4,500 mg THC infused in 1 lb (454 g) cacao butter. If using 4 oz (115 g) of infused butter for chocolate, your batch could contain ~1,000 mg THC total.
Divide chocolate into 40 pieces, and each is about 25 mg THC. Adjust based on your tolerance — beginners should aim for 5 to 10 mg THC per serving.
Do not worry about making mistakes! There are no mistakes with chocolate, just different ways to savour it. If it doesn’t work, try again. Have fun and as always, consume responsibly. Don’t get lifted and drive. Please respect the cannabis laws in your jurisdiction.
Cheers!
Bud
Notes
The other two being gummies and coffee. Brownies. Space cakes. Firecrackers. Um, suckers and lolipops. Soda – can’t forget soda, especially when we just made cannasugar.
Cacao butter is the pure, cold-pressed fat from cacao beans, while cocoa butter is processed at high temperatures, resulting in some nutrient loss. Both terms refer to the same product—the fat extracted from cocoa beans—but “cacao butter” is often used to emphasize its raw, unheated state and higher nutrient content, whereas “cocoa butter” is the standard term for the product used in chocolate and skin care.
How you decarab isn’t as important as that it was done. You must decarb in order to activate the THC and CBD.