There is a lot you don’t know about me, but for starters, you should know that I have an insatiable fruity candy lust that is rivaled only by my lusty feelings about cannabis.

This inclination toward fruity candy certainly stems from the lack of fruit in my diet and my body’s natural craving for colorful, fruit-flavored facsimiles. Wanting to curb my dependence to refined sugar, I took my fierce passion for fruity candy into my own hands and sought out different gummy candy recipes to sate my appetite.

Of all the gummy candies, gummy bears are among the most beloved. But unlike at your typical grocery store candy aisle, you may be challenged when trying to find cannabis-infused gummies in your local dispensary, as many states have banned gummy candies due to the presumption that they target children. In order to skirt this ban on gummies, I’ve adapted this rather health-oriented recipe to give you a boost of energy (offered by green tea-derived caffeine) while incorporating the the calming, wellness-driven effects of a CBD tincture.

Note that you can easily modify the recipe below to make THC-infused gummy bears; simply choose a THC-dominant tincture. You can also modify the flavors used based on your personal preferences, or omit the caffeine by using herbal rather than green tea.

Our recipe was adapted from this recipe by Mona Zavosh for Glow.

Recipe: Cherry, Green Tea, and CBD Gummy Bears

Start to finish: 45 minutes (active: 30 minutes)

Yields: 50 gummy bears

Approximate dosage: 5mg CBD and 1mg THC per gummy bear*

*Note: Potency may vary widely depending on your tincture.

Materials

Ingredients

  • 1 oz CBD tincture (I used Ethos 250mg CBD Tincture—if you use a tincture with more or less CBD, divide the total milligrams in your tincture by 50 to calculate the approximate dosage of each bear)
  • 2 green tea bags
  • 3 tablespoons creamed honey
  • ½ cup coconut water
  • ¾ cup tart cherry juice
  • 1 ½ tablespoons agar-agar powder or gelatin
  • ⅛ teaspoon Himalayan pink salt

Directions

  1. Pour coconut water into small saucepan. Bring to boil, then steep green tea bags in coconut water for up to 10 minutes (but no less than 4 minutes). Compost tea bags.
  2. Add cherry juice, salt, and creamed honey to saucepan. Stir gently until mixture is homogenous. Return mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer.
  3. Add agar-agar powder and whisk constantly for 3–4 minutes. (Note: The texture of agar-agar can be unsatisfying for folks used to the gelatin-based gummy bears. You can replace with gelatin, if you’d like.)
  4. Add your desired dosage of CBD tincture (alcohol, coconut oil, or glycerin tinctures are all fine) and whisk thoroughly until fully incorporated.
  5. Turn off stovetop and place funnel in condiment bottle.
  6. Transfer gummy bear liquid to condiment bottle. Be careful! This liquid is crazy hot and you will need to work quickly.
  7. Using oven mitt or hot pad, hold bottle and squeeze liquid into gummy bear mold.
  8. Transfer mold to refrigerator and let set for 15 minutes.
  9. Remove bears from tray and store in airtight container.
  10. Enjoy one or two at a time in 30 minute intervals until desired dosage is reached—that is, stop before you become the GIF below. (Editor’s note: CBD bears will not make you “trip bear balls.”)