Bay Area residents are already obsessed with food—put some cannabis in there, and we all go bananas. Unsurprisingly, today's local edibles market is touting all the watchwords of our favorite chefs and restaurants—artisanal, organic, and so on.
There are medicated treats for all occasions—granola for your breakfast, dried fruit for your hikes, pretzels for the afternoon, and no end to cookies, brownies and little cakes. Oh, and hot cocoa. And tea. Vegan. Gluten-free. Paleo. You get the picture.
But edibles can be tricky, so pay close attention to dosing recommendations on the packaging—for newbies, just 5mg of THC is enough to get a buzz on. When in doubt, remember this motto: start low and go slow. These things take time to kick in.
Don't see your fave? Email us with your suggestions!
The Haute Couture of Edibles: Kiva Confections
The packaging of these artisan chocolates is so beautiful and discreet, I can imagine buying them at Whole Foods—and the quality of the candy would pass muster there too. Kiva Confections began with a range of bars—they come in flavors including tangerine dark chocolate and vanilla chai milk chocolate, and in two strengths (60mg and 180mg per bar)—and they not only taste delicious, they are very clear and accurate about their cannabis dosages (a major plus). This year, when Kiva introduced Blueberry Terra Bites, chocolate-coated blueberries with a perfect 5mg per bite, the cannabis world pretty much freaked out. Stick them in your desk drawer. —Flavia Cassani // Kiva Confections are available at select dispensaries (including SPARC in SF and CBCB in Berkeley); kivaconfections.com
(Courtesy of Om Edibles)
Happiest Hot Cocoa Ever: Om Edibles' CBD Raw Sipping Cacao
One Sunday, after a particularly cool and misty hike at Land's End, I found myself warming up inside Harvest, the Inner Richmond's chic new weed boutique. I'm not usually one for edibles—one weird experience, you know the story—but on this afternoon, something caught my eye: raw organic cacao (yum) loaded with 80mg of pure, non-psychoactive, therapeutic CBD (happy dance), from the SF-based all-girl collective Om Edibles. That night, as my hubs and I commenced to binge watch House of Cards Season 4, we shared an 8oz. serving. Take it from me, there's no other cup of cocoa like this. Spike it with a pinch of cinnamon or cayenne and relish the divinely mellow but clear-headed effect—the only fog you'll feel is back at Ocean Beach. —Chloé Hennen // Om Edibles' CBD Raw Sipping Cacao ($36/4oz. jar) is available at select dispensaries (including Harvest) and atomedibles.org.
Breakfast of Champions: Flour Child's Granola
OMG the deliciousness. These grains of goodness are handmade in SF with oats, olive oil, raw turbinado sugar, sea salt, Knoll Farm dried figs, and more. If it weren't for the infusion of Lemon Diesel ice water hash—a sativa blend from French Laundry Fine Concentrates (this is gourmet territory, kids)—I could eat it all day. A friend and I split the jar (125mg of THC total) between the two of us, but newbies should start with just a tablespoon (about 7mg). When it kicked in, after a little over an hour, we felt a pleasant body buzz but little intoxication. Teamed with breathtaking views on a mountain hike, it was another beautiful day in the Bay Area. —Amanda Reiman // Flour Child's granola ($20/8oz. jar) is available at Sava, getsava.com, and select dispensaries; flourchild.org
Wake and Bake: Treat Yourself
Imagine going back in time and telling your college self that, one day, you'll be eating pop tarts with weed in them. Your college self's mind is blown. But back here in the future, Treat Yourself—a line of cannabis-infused edibles made for women—is satisfying our teenage munchy cravings and our adult lady needs with gluten- and refined sugar–free treats, including cherry almond vegan pop tartlettes ( 50mg CBD, 20mg THC per two) and coconut banana mini cakes (40mg CBD, 15mg THC each). Go ahead, start the day off right. —Andrea Brooks // Treat Yourself Mini Tartlette ($5), Pop Tartlettes ($20), and Coconut Banana Cakes ($16) are available at 7 Stars Holistic Healing Center (3288 Pierce St., #M108, Richmond) and at Sava, getsava.com; treatyourselfinc.com
(Courtesy of Moonman's Mistress)
Far Out Snack: Moonman's Mistress Chocolate Chip Crater Cookies
Want a cookie that will take you to the moon and back? The moonman and his mistress have conjured up a special dark chocolate chip cookie made with low-glycemic, paleo-centric ingredients and 20mg of cannabis each. Winner of Edible Magazine's Best Edible Award in 2015, these sweets were created by a holistic health coach and a personal trainer—two healthy-eating exercise junkies who believe in the medical benefits of cannabis. No guilt. —A.B // Moonman's Mistress Crater Cookies ($20 for two) are available through Meadow and Sava, and at moonmansmistress.com.
(Courtesy of Native Seed)
The New Protein Shake: Native Seed's Lift Protein Bar
Oakland couple Robbie and Katy Villa are serious about health, wellness, and allergen-free baking. He's an organic farmer, she's a superfoods baker and yoga teacher, and together they make high-protein cannabis energy bars packed with fiber, omega 3s, hemp protein, and Sour Diesel cold water hash. Their company, Native Seed, offers its Lift Bar in two strengths that are great for those with high tolerance to THC—60mg (2-4 doses) and 180mg (4-8 doses). Or, try the 1:1 Protein Bites, with an even balance of CBD and THC to fuel you and a friend through the day. —A.B. // Native Seed Lift Bars ($10-$20 per bar) are available at select Bay Area dispensaries (including Harborside in Oakland); nativeseedcreations.com
(Courtesy of Swerve Confection)
The Canna-Aphrodisiac: Swerve Confections's Snuggle Bites
Cannabis has long been used in Ayurvedic medicine where it is known to enhance sexual pleasure. Oakland Ayurvedic practitioner Eden Tosch has tapped into her understanding of cannabis and her knowledge of how to boost libido through herbal combinations to create Snuggle Bites. The mostly organic bars incorporate ingredients ranging from your everyday coconut, raw honey and cocoa nibs to Ayurvedic go-tos such as shankhapushpi and ashwaghanda in order to increase passion and sensitize the body for max pleasure. Say yes! —A.B. // Snuggle Bites ($6-$20) are available at select Bay Area dispensaries (including SF'sThe Apothecarium); swerveconfections.com
Probiotic Pot: Oara Chocolates
Berkeley native Charlotte B. T. is fascinated by the ever-developing scientific evidence that cannabis can be used to treat common ailments, and with all the emerging research around probiotics, gut health, and their connection to overall wellbeing. Formerly known as Functional Flora, the recently rebranded Oara Chocolates house your healthy probiotics (10 billion live cultures) in organic dark couverture chocolate with a low dose (5mg) of biodynamically grown cannabis—in other words, you can pop them on the regular and still remain functional. Charlotte says dark chocolate has synergistic effects when consumed with probiotics and cannabis—but really, it's just delicious. New flavors include goji berry, almond sea salt, and mint cacao nib. —A.B. // Oara Probiotic Cannabis Chocolates ($14/12 bites) are available through select delivery services, getoara.com
Cannabis in Your Cup: Skyline Boulevard Teas & Infusions
What's more nourishing than curling up with a cup of hot tea? A cup with a cannabis infusion. Skyline Boulevard's hand-blended collection of cannabis teas and infusions are delightfully simple to consume and impart a really smooth, mellow high. Each tea bag offers a maximum 30mg potency per cup, but the ultimate strength of your brew depends upon how much milk you add. For full potency, splash in an ounce of milk—you can half the potency by cutting milk to one-half ounce, or for a very low dose (2-5mg THC), skip the milk altogether. These teas come in peppermint, hibiscus, cold & flu, rooibos, and earl grey, or for an extra treat, try the brand's hot cocoa and chai latte mixes. These cups bring all new meaning to the term Netflix and chill. — A.B. // Skyline Boulevard Teas ($4) and Infused Hot Drink Mixes ($8) are available at Sava, getsava.com; @SKYLINEBLVDCO
(Courtesy of Korova Edibles)
The Power Snack: Korova Edibles
In the fast growing world of cannabis edibles, which is increasingly striving to include foodies outside the super-stoner set, few companies go for potency quite like the folks at Korova Edibles—in fact, it's their tag line. Started up in Wine Country in early 2013, Korova instantly made waves with their line of cookies and brownies with 150mg to, wait for it, 1,000mg of THC. (For context, the recommended dose for beginners is just 5mg.) But seriously, y'all, unless you have acute pain and the highest tolerance ever, you might want to stay away from mind-erasing Korova's Black Bar. For something more middle of the road, share the vegan Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar (300mg) with pals—one small bite is way more than enough to get the party started. —Jimi Devine // Korova Edibles are available at SPARC and Bloom Room in SF, korovaedibles.com
Here's Your Salt Fix: Auntie Dolores' Savory Pretzels
Pretzels are the cannabis edible you never knew you were craving. These amazing treats from the Oakland kitchen of woman-owned Auntie Dolores are the best crunchy, salty edible on the market—and they happen to be both vegan and diabetic-friendly (hello!). With plenty of umami spices, you could easily snack on these all day. But unless you're a professional stoner, we don't really recommend that. Each package contains 120mg of THC with 12 recommended doses. Portion out what you can handle and hide the rest away for later. —J.D. // Auntie Dolores' Savory Pretzels ($18) are available at select dispensaries (including Harvest and The Apothecarium), and online at auntiedolores.com.
(Courtesy of IncrediMeds via Yelp)
Homegrown in Bayview: IncrediMeds
The Green Cross has been baking cannabis treats for more than a decade, these days operating out of a Bayview kitchen certified by the Department of Public Health. Their exclusive brand IncrediMeds won Best Chocolate Bar on The Edibles List in 2015, and this is just one of many accolades. IncrediMeds are also state rules–compliant, and come in about 80 formulations, from olive oil and gummies to gluten-free vitality bars and dark chocolate with candied ginger. —David Downs // IncrediMeds are available exclusively through The Green Cross, 4218 Mission St. (Excelsior), thegreencross.org
--
Meet our Cannabis Guide Authors:
(From left to right)
Andrea Brooks is the San Francisco–based founder and CEO ofSava, an online marketplace for high-quality, hand-crafted cannabis goods.
David Downs is a San Francisco–based award-winning freelance journalist, best-selling author, and 7x7's Cannabis Insider columnist.
Jimi Devine has been involved in the cannabis industry since 2005. He writes for SFGate's "Smell the Truth," Cannabis Now, and more.
Amanda Reiman, PhD, is a cannabis expert, vegan, Oakland evangelist, and teaches classes on sex and drugs at UC Berkeley.
Flavia Cassani is a cannabis enthusiast, entrepreneur, Flow Kana cofounder, and environmental devotee.
Chloé Hennen is 7x7's editor in chief who got curious about cannabis in the Bay Area and decided to make this guide.
(Illustrations by Julia Barzizza)
