One of the skills we’ve all collectively leveled up the quickest since being in lockdown is our ability to make a great meal at home. Foccacia, fried chicken, gourmet ramen — you name it, we’ve all more or less become our own favorite personal chefs out of necessity. Now, as part of our continued quest to improve ourselves (we’ll need these new skills for dating in a post-COVID-19 world), we’re going to learn how to infuse THC into every meal in an effort to “elevate” our breakfasts, lunches, and dinners.

When it comes to the world of DIY THC infusion, there simply isn’t a better person to talk to than Monica Lo. She’s the founder of Sous Weed — a blog dedicated to using cannabis as a secret superfood ingredient in your home kitchen by providing detailed recipes on how to make everything from eggs benedict to seasonal cocktails, both of which will get you as high as you want/need them to get you. Chef Lo specializes in sous vide cannabis extraction which essentially unlocks an entire kitchen pantry to THC-infusion, and through Sous Weed she passes on that knowledge to help give her readers the skills they need to get cooking, whether they’re beginners or tried and true enthusiasts.

In addition to pioneering her own sous vide extraction method, Chef Lo also acts as the creative director and photographer for Sous Weed, which has the look of a digital cookbook. To help get you started on your THC-infused journey, we connected with Monica Lo while in lockdown and she offered advice on finding the right dose, how to make your own THC-infused olive oil, and offered us recipes for some seriously delicious-looking dishes.

Sous Weed is a blog that encourages people to make their own cannabis-infused edibles at home. Why is putting that power into our hands important to you?

My goal with Sous Weed is to empower people to make their own infusions at home. Given the current pandemic situation, it might be challenging to get to a dispensary to stock up on your medicine. With rising unemployment rates and high prices due to licensing costs and taxes, it’s more economic to grow-your-own (in legal states) and to make-your-own edibles. With new state regulations on lower dosages, people who need stronger doses for medical purposes might not be able to find what they need in stores.

When you do-it-yourself, it’s easier to make healthy edibles and to customize the dosage to personal needs.

You came up with your sous vide method of cannabis extraction out of necessity, can you shed some light on that, and how the process of THC extraction via sous vide works?

Sous Weed was born from a need for discreet edibles when I had herniated a disc and the painkillers my doctor prescribed wreaked havoc on my system. I lived in a strict apartment building where smoke and cannabis smells were prohibited. As the former creative director of a sous vide startup, I thought, “well, maybe I can sous vide my weed?”—and it worked!
It was so simple. All I needed to do was fill a jar with cannabis and oil and drop it underwater to cook. There’s no smell whatsoever and I didn’t get evicted. I started to document my creations on my blog, as I was healing, and that’s how Sous Weed came to life.

Why sous vide? We have a food writer here who also swears by them.

Precise temperature control — babysitting a stovetop or slow-cooker is no longer necessary. You can set it and forget it. No fear of evictions: It’s completely aroma-free during the infusion process. Simple to infuse fats, oils, and alcohol. Save time and resources — you can make multiple infusions at once.

In your opinion, why are home-made edibles so much better than those found at a dispensary?

When you make your own infusions at home, like olive oil, for example, it’s simple to work into your everyday meals. I didn’t want to have to eat a chocolate bar or a pot brownie every time I needed pain relief. By filling my kitchen pantry with a variety of homemade infused oils, I could easily medicate myself during mealtimes. Don’t get me wrong, there are tons of delicious edibles out in the market that I enjoy. But in my humble opinion, fresh is best.

How do you go about dosing, and how much control do you have over the potency?

Short answer? There are so many variables with the cannabis strains, oil you use, heat fluctuations, etc… that the only way to know for sure is to get your homemade infusion lab tested. That takes a lot of money and time but we can estimate.

To get a better sense of your dosaging, make sure you purchase cannabis that has been lab-tested. The percentage of cannabinoids should be listed on the package.

The gentle cooking temperatures of the sous vide method means that various cannabinoids, delicate terpenes, and aromas are left intact, making edibles that are delicious and true to the strain that you’ve chosen, rather than burnt and acrid. When the multitude of cannabinoids and terpenes from that particular strain are infused into your oil, they work together to boost the effectiveness of each medicinal compound in what we call the “entourage effect.”

What are some dosing guidelines for people who have no knowledge of calculating a proper dose for themselves?

Edibles are a low barrier to entry — everyone eats! As a beginner, I recommend starting with two to five mg and waiting up to two hours for full effects. That’s how you get a sense of your tolerance level. Have water and snacks around. Take a walk, write, relax in a bath, or enjoy being in your happy place.

While you can’t overdose, it’s uncomfortable when you’ve consumed too much. You might get dizzy, feel heavy, or get paranoid. None of that is fun so I keep a CBD tincture on hand in case that happens. For many people, CBD will help counteract the psychoactivity of THC and balance you out.

What is an easy cannabis-infused recipe for first-timers to attempt?

I would start with a simple Sous Weed Olive Oil because it lends itself so well to so many recipes! It’s incredibly easy with a sous vide machine but it’s ok if you don’t have one! I have a basic stove-top recipe as well — it’s just a smellier process. Don’t feel like you have to limit yourself to olive oil or butter though! Some of my favorite recipes include infused sesame oil, lard, coconut oil, honey, vodka, and more!

Just like the cannabis-infused butter, it’s super easy to infuse cannabis into your olive oil with the sous vide technique. Since you can fit many mason jars in a sous vide water bath, imagine the all the different flavored oil concoctions you can whip up all in one sitting! This technique is simple and discreet–no smell! You can just set it and forget it.

RECIPE: How to make 16 oz Sous Vide Cannabis-Infused Olive Oil

Ingredients:

• 2 cups (16 oz) extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 oz cannabis trim or flowers*, roughly crushed

Directions:

1. Decarb your cannabis to activate the THC.
2. Pour olive oil and add decarboxylated cannabis into a large 24 oz mason jar. Seal the jar finger tight. It’s important to use heat-tempered jars specific to canning, so please, no repurposed mayo jars. A large freezer-safe zip bag or silicone sous vide bag may be used as well.
3. Set your sous vide water bath to 85ºC (185ºF). Once the sous vide water bath has reached its temp, gently place the jar (or bag) in the water bath. Sous vide for 4 hours.
4. Carefully remove from water bath and strain out the solids. Discard the used flower and allow the infused olive oil to cool. Store in a cool dark place.

To Consume:

The dosage of cannabis olive oil specified in this recipe is a loose suggestion. Dosing homemade edibles can be tricky, so the best way to test for potency is to start with one portion of a serving, in this case, one teaspoon, and wait one to two hours, then make an informed decision on whether to consume more. You can always add non-infused olive oil if the infusion is too strong.

Always dose carefully and listen to your body, and never drive under the influence of cannabis. Keep out of reach of children.

*Note: You can add more or less cannabis flower depending on desired potency.

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What’s a cannabis-infused dessert recipe we need to try?

I didn’t have a sweet-tooth until adulthood and I’ve been craving sugar especially during the pandemic! These days, I turn to a sweet treat for comfort and I keep cookie dough in the freezer in case of emergencies. One of the best things I’ve made recently is a Cannabis-Infused Basque Cheesecake, infused with medicated honey. It’s got a deeply caramelized top with a silky, lava-like center. So heavenly.

What’s one of your favorite cannabis dishes to prepare, and why?

I have a Spicy Sichuan Wonton recipe that I love. I’ll usually pick a gassy, garlicky smelling strain of cannabis to infuse into the sesame oil and make a chili sauce out of it. It’s a great meal or an afternoon snack and it reminds me of my childhood making dumplings and wontons with my mom.

Any cannabis-infused cocktail recipes we need to try?

I have a Bloody Mary Jane recipe on my blog that I use all the time and it’s chock-full of charred tomatoes and jalapeños. Smoky and delicious. I also have a recipe for Cannabis-Infused Bitters to use for all your cocktail needs.

What excites you about the cannabis culinary scene right now, and where do you expect to see it go in the near future?

There are a lot of cannabis chefs creating exciting food on social media. Unfortunately with legal issues and our current regulations, it’s difficult to bring to the masses. DIY, at-home-for-personal-use is the way to go right now but I hope to see more cannabis restaurants and cafes pop up in California when the pandemic is over. I would also love to see cannabis and edibles at local farmer’s markets in the future.

What We Do in the Shadows (FX, 10:00 p.m.) — Mark Hamill drops by to play an old enemy of Laszlo’s intent on killing him, for good. Naturally, Laszlo goes on the run.

The Goldbergs (ABC, 8:00 p.m.) — Barry teaches Erica a lesson in compassion when Geoff’s dad is sent to the hospital and Beverly takes steps to ensure Adam gets crowned Prom King.

The Masked Singer (Fox, 8:00 p.m.) — Jay Pharoah joins the judging panel as the final four compete for the golden mask trophy in tonight’s semi-final.

Schooled (ABC, 8:30 p.m.) — Lainey must choose between Barry and CB while Coach Mellor is faced with a difficult parenting decision when Toby is invited to the prom by a senior.

American Housewife (ABC, 9:00 p.m.) — Katie goes to bat for Anna-Kat by confronting the mother of the child she suspects might be bullying her daughter at school. Meanwhile, Taylor completes the final item on her life skills checklist – teaching Greg to shoot a three-pointer.

Motherland: Fort Salem (Freeform, 9:00 p.m.) — The unit grows closer in the aftermath of Citydrop as the witches’ distrust of Alder grows. Tally learns some shocking information about Gerit while Anacostia grants one last favor to Scylla.

Single Parents (ABC, 9:30 p.m.) — After a wine-filled night of packing, Angie struggles to remember what happened with Will while Poppy encourages him to come clean about his feelings before Derek can take her away.

By now, we’ve all seen the many conspiracy theories about the coronavirus pandemic floating around (Plandemic, anyone?), but medical conspiracy theories are nothing new. In fact, most of the anti-vaccine movement is predicated on a couple of them that are getting a lot of attention right now:

1) Pharmaceutical companies are big, money-grabbing corporations (which is arguably true) and therefore doctors and medical associations that recommend people get vaccinated are all part of the Big Pharma conspiracy to fool the masses into paying them big money (arguably not true).

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2) There’s a bigger, more nefarious plot organized by some evil player (ahem, Bill Gates) to vaccinate people in an attempt to depopulate the world or control the masses somehow, and the pandemic is just a planned rouse to give the medical “establishment” an excuse to carry out the dastardly plan.

I’m sure there are other somewhat related ones, but one thing they all seem to have in common is an underlying assumption that most doctors are willing to go against their “do no harm” oath in order to stash some cash. That seems like a terribly negative view of doctors and humanity in general, but that’s how conspiracy theories work—they play on people’s fears and amplify skepticism to outrageous proportions.

Dr. David Young, a hospital care specialist in the Chicago area, shared a breakdown of his daily schedule in a COVID ward to illustrate what these conspiracy theories sound like when you take them out of the chatroom/YouTube information bubble in which they fester. And you have to admit, the absurdity really does come through.

Young wrote:

A lot of people have been asking me what it’s like being on the COVID wards in the hospital, so I figured I’d share what a typical day looks like for me:

6am – Wake up. Roll off of my pile of money that Big Pharma gave me. Softly weep as it doesn’t put a dent in my medical school loans

6:30am – Make breakfast, using only foods from the diet that gives me everlasting life by avoiding all fats, sugars, carbs, and proteins. For details buy my book and check out my shop.

7am – Get to work, load up my syringes with coronavirus before rounds.

8am – See my patients for the day. Administer the medications that the government tells me to. Covertly rub essential oils on the ones I want to get better.

9:30am – Call Bill Gates to check how 5G tower construction is going, hoping for more coronavirus soon. He tells me they’re delayed due to repairs on the towers used to spread the Black Plague. Curse the fact that this is the most efficient way to spread infectious diseases.

10am – One patient tells me he knows “the truth” about coronavirus. I give him a Tdap booster. He becomes autistic in front of my eyes. He’ll never conspire against me again.

11am – Tend to the secret hospital garden of St. John’s wort and ginkgo leaves that we save for rich patients and donors.

12:30pm – Pick up my briefcase of money from payroll, my gift from Pfizer for the incomprehensible profits we make off of the free influenza vaccine given every year.

1pm – Conference call with Dr. Fauci and the lab in Wuhan responsible for manufacturing viruses. Tell them my idea about how an apocalypse-style zombie virus would be a cool one to try for the next batch.

2pm – A patient starts asking me about getting rid of toxins. I ask her if she has a liver and kidneys. She tells me she knows “the truth” about Big Anatomy and that the only way to detoxify herself is to eat nothing but lemon wedges and mayonnaise for weeks. I give her a Tdap booster.

2:45pm – Help the FBI, CIA, and CDC silence the masses. Lament the fact that I can only infringe on one or two of their rights. Oh well, there’s always tomorrow.

4pm – One of my rich patients begins to crash. Laugh as I realize I’ve mismatched her spirit animal and zodiac moon sign. I switch out the Purple Amethyst above her bed for a Tiger’s Eye geode. She stabilizes. I throw some ginkgo leaves on her for good measure

6pm – Go onto YouTube and see coronavirus conspiracy videos everywhere. Curse my all powerful government for how inept they are at keeping people from spreading “the truth”

6:10pm – Go onto Amazon and see that a book about “the truth” is the #1 seller this week. Question the power of my all powerful government. Make a reminder to myself to get more Tdap boosters from the Surgeon General next time we talk.

7pm – Time to go home. Before I leave, sacrifice a goat to Dr. Fauci and say three Hippocratic Oaths.

9pm – Take a contented sigh as I snuggle under the covers made of the tinfoil hats of my enemies, realizing that my 4 years of medical school and 3 years of residency training have been put to good use today.

Snort. Even as someone who uses essential oils and herbal treatments for some things, I found this hilarious. That really does seem to be close to what some conspiracy-minded folks think doctors do all day.

The reality is that the vast majority of doctors really do go into medicine to help people and would not tacitly go along with any evil plots to harm even one person, much less mass numbers of people. While there are legitimate discussions and debates to be had about pharmaceutical medicine vs. alternative medicine vs. natural medicine for various ailments, as soon as we get into evil plots and conspiracy territory, those legitimate discussions lose all credibility.

Doctors on the front line are dealing with enough right now. They really shouldn’t have to be fending off absurd ideas about them lying and scheming en masse to fill their own pockets or bring the world to ruin.

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Grammy-nominated rapper Mozzy just released his full-length effort Beyond Bulletproof. Now, Mozzy celebrates the record’s release with a clever video accompanying one of his collaborative tracks. Following social distancing guidelines, Mozzy, G Herbo, and King Von share a creative take with their quarantine-recorded “Body Count” visual.

The visual opens with a parody of a newscaster discussing how the coronavirus “is going crazy.” The remainder of the video sees each rapper performing from their respective homes, with Mozzy only opening the door to accept a food delivery order from a suspiciously sick delivery man.

Ahead of the visual’s release, Mozzy spoke with Uproxx about Beyond Bulletproof and what he does to become a better person:

“Spending more time with my children, that always helps. It fulfills me. Looking out for people. Instead of looking out for a couple of people this month, we going to look out for 20 people. Even if it’s small, even if it’s minute. Just looking out for people. I’m taking it to the next level of looking out. Just going further with it. Reading; that always assists me. It helps mold me. Dedicating myself to my family. Understanding what a priority is. Understanding how to prioritize and just understanding that we are limited to time on this earth and so whatever it is that I want to accomplish, whether it’s with family, financially, socially, I got a bite down. I got to live within a moment. I got to do it right now, right now. Practicing living in the moment always help me.”

Watch Mozzy’s “Body Count” video above.

Beyond Bulletproof is out now via Empire. Get it here.

Marvel Studios might be the house that Robert Downey Jr. built, but now that the actor has officially hung up his Iron Man armor, he’s apparently going to work for the “Distinguished Competition.” According to The Hollywood Reporter, Downey and his wife will produce an eight episode live-action adaptation of the DC Comics/Veritgo series Sweet Tooth for Netflix. Will Forte and James Brolin are currently attached to star.

Written by Jeff Lemire, here’s the official synopsis for Sweet Tooth, which ran for 40 issues starting in September 2009:

After being raised in total isolation, Gus – a boy born with deer-like antlers – is left to survive in an American landscape devastated a decade earlier by an inexplicable pandemic. Even more remarkable is that Gus is part of a rare new breed of human/animal hybrid children who have emerged in its wake, all apparently immune to the infection. Enter Jepperd, a violent, hulking drifter who soon takes in Gus and promises to lead him to “The Preserve,” a fabled safe-haven for hybrid children. Along the way they’ll have to contend with science militias, deadly scavengers, rival bounty hunters, and hybrid worshipping cultists as they fight to make it to safety and solve the mysteries of this deadly new frontier.

Pushing Sweet Tooth to series is an interesting move, but fitting for Netflix’s current strategy of still pursuing comic book properties even after it publicly cut ties with Marvel. It also jibes with Downey’s recent foray into television, which includes shepherding the Perry Mason series starring Matthew Rhys at HBO. What does raise questions is why Sweet Tooth landed at Netflix and not HBO Max, which has been aggressively mining DC Comics properties for streaming content and already has a relationship with Downey. But that could be a simple matter of who had the sweetest deal.

(That was uncalled for. You’re right.)

(Via THR)

Professional wrestling and professional basketball have a history dating back decades. But despite the mutual respect between athletes of the NBA and the WWE, only a handful of players have ever stepped inside the squared circle for a legit match, mainly Dennis Rodman and Karl Malone.

Well it’s about time to add another name to that list: Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter. A longtime pro wrestling fan (and former 24/7 Champion), Kanter recently sat down for an interview with Stadium in which he was asked about his post-NBA plans. Kanter didn’t hesitate at all, not only saying he wanted to become a WWE Superstar, but that the company has already made him an offer to get in the ring:

“Oh, I’m definitely becoming a WWE wrestler, for sure. I actually already have offers from WWE, but I’m like, ‘Dude, I gotta finish my basketball career first.’ But after my [basketball] career, I’m definitely becoming one.”

The 6’11” Kanter, who turns 28 next week, already has nine seasons in the NBA under his belt. He is under contract with the Celtics through the end of the 2020-2021 season. Could we see Kanter vs. Gronk for the 24/7 championship at a WWE pay-per-view in Saudi Arabia in 2022? I mean, literally anything is possible at this point, But at least we know the guy’s got moves:

Ariana Grande spent some time with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe on Beats 1 today, as she joined the host to play some songs and talk about a number of things. She revealed she made a song with Doja Cat, and she also took some time to discuss Mac Miller.

Grande told Lowe about how devoted to music Miller was, saying that “nothing was more important” to him than his craft:

“I think that nothing mattered more to him than music, ever. And he was the kind of person who woke up and rolled into the studio, tumbled out of bed, into the studio next door. Nothing was more important. Talk about losing track of time and forgetting to eat, remind yourself to take care of yourself and be a person. He was a person who gave literally every single second of his thought and time and life to his music. And I think that’s so evident in what he’s left us with, and just how many incredible and different bodies of work, everything from Blue Slide Park, KIDS, to all the way through Divine Feminine, to Swimming, to Circles, to everything in between.

It’s just such a beautiful gift I think that he kind of touched the world with, and I think the thing he’d want most is for us to just appreciate it and not forget about it.”

Find more excerpts from Grande’s conversation with Lowe here.

For the first time since 1983, the official NBA game ball will no longer be produced by Spalding as Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports reports the league and Spalding have mutually agreed to part ways after next season when their contract runs up and Wilson will take over production.

Wilson was the NBA’s first ball manufacturer, but since 1983 Spalding has held that role. Wilson, which is the official game ball sponsor of the NCAA Tournament, will now produce game balls for most high school, college, and professional basketball leagues.

The NBA’s contract with Spalding is expiring and now Wilson will be the new partner to produce the league’s official game ball starting with the 2021-22 season, sources with knowledge of the deal informed Yahoo Sports.

Wilson will also serve as the official game ball of the WNBA, NBA G League, NBA 2K League and Basketball Africa League (BAL), sources with knowledge told Yahoo Sports.

It’ll be strange for a lot of fans to see NBA basketball being played with something other than Spalding, but Wilson will be working with the NBA and NBPA on a new game ball. Initially, they will use the same leather and specifications for the first edition, but will take advisement from players on potential tweaks they’d like to see. The WNBA will continue to use a composite ball, per Haynes.

UK rapper Slowthai has already had a busy year. From recording music with Gorillaz to having a very public meltdown on live television during the NME Awards, the rapper has been making headlines. Now, Slowthai shares a look into a new era of music with the Kenny Beats-produced track “Magic.”

“Magic” arrives as a surprise release from the rapper. The song follows shortly behind “Enemy” which was released just a few days ago and marked his first solo single of 2020. While “Magic” leaked prior to its debut, Slowthai returned with a slightly tweaked version for the official release.

With blown-out, adrenaline-pumping instrumentals provided by Kenny Beats, Slowthai continues his off the wall style lyrical style. “I sip Brandy, not too handy / With the tool, but it’s coolio / Been a lost boy like Rufio / And now we got dough, employ that ho,” Slowthai raps, referencing a character in the 1991 Robin Williams film Hook.

While “Magic” marks the first song Kenny Beats has teamed up on with Slowthai, the producer has worked with rappers from across the board. His collaborations list includes Tyler The Creator, Mura Masa, Jpegmafia, Rico Nasty, and Denzel Curry.

Listen to “Magic” above.

Some of the artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.