Green smoothies are a great way to up your intake of health-boosting vegetables and fruits while enjoying a vibrant, energizing drink. Adding CBD and THC to the mix along with fresh young cannabis shoots kicks things up a few notches in the feel-good department, with a range of physical benefits to be found in eating your favorite smokable greens. In their unheated state, the cannabinoids CBDa and THCa interact with different receptors than their post-heated versions, with the raw form being shown to support the auto-immune system, as well as being neuro-protective and anti-inflammatory (as concluded in peer-reviewed studies fully available on the British Pharmacological Society and National Library of Medicine websites). Dr. William Courtney is a well-known pioneer in documenting and treating ailments with raw cannabis juicing since 2010, and his site cannabisinternational.org is a great resource for digging deeper into firsthand accounts. The short and quick version: Be sure to make use of those extra greens on defoliation days, especially the young shoots and buds!
Kale, spinach, parsley and ginger all play a part in super-charging this smoothie for maximum antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, plus the extra vitamin C boost from freshly-squeezed orange juice is the perfect immune system support. Add a healthy fat like coconut milk or almond butter as a carrier for the kief, and to make the drink more satisfying as a fuel, throw in some superfoods like hemp seeds and spirulina to incorporate essential vitamins like magnesium and potassium, and you’re well on your way to next-level, healthy-green-smoothie heaven. Speaking of potassium, adding frozen bananas both thickens the drink to a shake-like consistency and blends into the mango and pineapple for a perfect tastewave of tropical, sweet smoothie bliss.
Ingredients
1 gram of high CBD-to-THC ratio kief, from strains like Cannatonic or AC/DC* 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice (juice from about 1 medium-sized orange)
1 handful raw cannabis greens (15-20 baby shoots and leaves)
1 cup fresh spinach
1 cup fresh kale 1/2 cup parsley
3 tbsp. coconut milk (or almond butter)
2/3 cup almond/coconut milk (or more juice/coconut water/milk substitute)
2 tbsp. hemp seeds 1 tsp. spirulina
1-inch knob of ginger (about the width of your thumb)
1 cup frozen mango chunks 1/2 cup frozen pineapple
2 frozen bananas
Instructions
1. Decarboxylate Kief: Preheat the oven to 240°F/115°C, using an oven thermometer to monitor and adjust the heat as needed. Spread the kief evenly over a parchment-lined baking sheet or oven-safe dish. Cover tightly with two sheets of aluminum foil, making sure to seal the edges to prevent any vapor from escaping. Bake for 30 minutes, shaking lightly about half-way through. Let cool fully before removing the aluminum foil. After cooling, the now “decarbed” kief can be sprinkled on anything that has a good amount of fat involved, like peanut butter or coconut oil or ice cream (avoid further heating).
2. Blend it up: Soak and wash your cannabis leaves and other greens. Drain, then put greens and all other ingredients (including the baked kief) into a highspeed blender. A high-powered blending tool is key here, as mulching all the roughage into a drinkable state makes all the difference in terms of appealing texture. If you have a juicer, juice everything except the kief, hemp seeds, spirulina and frozen fruit, then put everything in a blender together after juicing the in-season fruit and veggies.
3. Enjoy: Pour into a chilled glass. Garnish with fresh fruit and hemp seeds. Serve immediately.
Makes: 4 cups, or two 2-cup servings
Dosage: Change numbers to desired dosage and CBD/THC percentage: The kief I used had about 15 percent CBD per gram, so the one gram contains approximately 150mg of activated CBD in total. By dividing the total mgs of THC by the number of servings, in this case two smoothies, each serving will have about 75 milligrams of CBD. (Multiply the grams of kief used by its estimated CBD/THC percentage, then add a zero to the end of that number for a rough total amount of CBD/THC in mg. Then divide that total mg amount by the number of servings.) As with all edibles, remember to take it low and slow, allowing 1-2 hours to gauge the effect before eating more.
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