CULTURE Recipes

Jan. 21 is Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday, and to celebrate the iconic civil rights leader, CULTURE has prepared a menu based on traditional—and delicious—African American dishes.

Menu: Collard Greens with Bacon, Oven Fried Chicken, Red Beans & Rice, Sweet Potato Pie, Sweet Iced Tea

Collard Greens with Bacon

Makes 6 servings.

1 pound collard greens

6 slices bacon, chopped

2 cups water

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped sweet red pepper

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

4 cloves garlic, minced

Red wine vinegar

Wash collard greens thoroughly in cold water and drain well. Discard stems and trim bruised leaves. Chop the leaves coarsely so they still amount to about six cups of greens, lightly packed. Set aside. In a large saucepan cook bacon until crisp. Remove bacon, but save drippings in saucepan. Drain bacon on paper towels and set aside. Add water, onion, sweet red pepper, sugar, salt , cayenne pepper and garlic to the saucepan with the bacon drippings. Bring to a boil, add chopped collard greens and reduce heat. Simmer covered for one hour or until greens are tender. Add bacon and remove from heat. Serve with a slotted spoon. Drizzle with a little red wine vinegar if desired.

Oven Fried Chicken

Makes 6 servings

1 egg, slightly beaten

3 tablespoons milk

1 1/4 cups crushed saltine crackers, about 35

1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

3 tablespoon Canna Butter*, melted

3 pounds assorted chicken pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl combine egg and milk. For the coating, in a shallow dish combine the crushed crackers, thyme, paprika, salt and pepper. Stir in melted Canna Butter and set aside. Dip chicken pieces into the egg-milk mixture one at a time and then coat with the cracker mixture. In a 15×10 baking pan, arrange the chicken bone sides down so pieces aren’t touching. Sprinkle chicken pieces with any remaining cracker mixture so they are well coated. Bake uncovered for one hour or until chicken is done and crispy. Do not turn chicken while baking.

Red Beans & Rice

Makes 6 servings

1 large onion, cut into thin wedges

1 cup chopped red sweet pepper

4 cloves garlic, minced

3 tablespoons Cannabis-Infused Oil**

1/2 cup fresh cilantro

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 16-ounce cans of kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 cup vegetable broth

1/4 cup lime juice

2 cups cooked brown rice

In a large saucepan cook onion, sweet pepper and garlic in hot oil over medium heat for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1/4 cup of cilantro, plus the oregano, cumin and black pepper. Cook and stir for one minute. Add beans and broth. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes or until liquid is thickened to desired consistency. Serve beans over rice and sprinkle with remaining cilantro.

Sweet Potato Pie

Makes 8 servings

1 pie crust

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup shortening

1/4 cup Canna Butter*, cold and cut up

1/4 cup ice water

Pie filling (see recipe below)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a medium bowl, stir together flour and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening and butter until pieces are pea size. Sprinkle one tablespoon of the water over part of the flour mixture, toss with a fork. Push moistened pastry to side of the bowl. Repeat moistening flour mixture using one tablespoon at a time until all the flour mixture is moistened. Gather flour mixture into a ball, kneading gently until it holds together. On a lightly floured surface use your hands to slightly flatten pastry. Roll pastry from center to edges into a circle, about 12 inches in diameter. Wrap pastry around the rolling pin. Unroll into a 9-inch pie plate. Ease pastry into pie plate without stretching it. Trim pastry to 1/2  inch beyond the edge of pie plate edge. Crimp edges. Prick bottom and sides of pastry with a fork. Line pastry with a double thickness of foil. Bake for eight minutes and remove foil. Bake for another eight minutes more until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Carefully pour pie filling into pastry shell. Bake for 40 minutes or until knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes. Cover and chill for two hours.

Pie Filling

2 cups mashed cooked sweet potatoes (or 1 can sweet potatoes, drained and mashed)

4 tablespoon Canna Butter* melted

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/8 teaspoon salt

3 eggs, beaten

1 cup buttermilk or dairy sour cream

In a large bowl stir together sweet potatoes, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and salt. Add eggs and beat lightly with a fork until combined. Gradually stir in buttermilk (or sour cream) until thoroughly mixed.

Sweet Iced Tea

Ice

5 ounces of iced tea

1 ounce Cannabis Simple Syrup***

Sprig of fresh mint

In an eight-ounce glass filled with ice, add tea and Cannabis Simple Syrup and stir. Garnish with mint.

******

Canna Butter*

1 cup unsalted butter

1 ounce low to average quality dried leaf cannabis or 1/2 ounce average dried bud

4 cups water

Bring water and butter to boil in a small pot, lower heat to simmer. Simmer gently for about 1 1/2 hours. Mash and stir frequently to extract all THC from the plant material. After cooking, use cheesecloth to strain the butter/water mixture. Pour about 2 cups clean boiling water over the leaves in the strainer to extract every last drop of butter. Squeeze plant material well to remove as much liquid as possible. Chill the butter/water mixture in the refrigerator until the butter has solidified (1 to 2 hours). Separate butter from water and keep butter in the refrigerator (or freezer for longer storage) until needed.

Cannabis-Infused Oil**

1 cup cooking oil

1 1/4 ounces low to average quality dried leaf cannabis or 3/4 ounce average dried bud

Place cannabis in a slow cooker. Add oil. If necessary, add a little extra oil in order to just cover the cannabis. Cook on low for six to eight hours, stirring often. Strain through cheesecloth to remove plant material. For further purity, strain through a coffee filter. Store in the refrigerator for up to three months.

Cannabis Simple Syrup***

1/2 oz cannabis buds

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

In a saucepan, sauté the buds in sugar and water over medium heat for 20 minutes. Strain the buds. Pour the remaining green-colored syrup into a glass container. Let it cool and refrigerate. Pour over fruit or fruit salad and let the syrup fully absorb.