Magnus8;3199272 said:HashGirl;3199054 said:So for someone who has never made canna cream, what form does the beeswax come in? If a solid, do you melt it prior to mixing it with the chosen carrier oil or do you just heat it up/melt it in a crockpot or something with the chosen carrier oil?
Hey HashGirl,
Beeswax comes a a rock-hard solid. On very warm days, it might be a little bit softer, but not much. It is very hard to cut and you will dull your sharpest knives doing so. Besides, soap and water will not clean it off your knife. Once you've used a knife on beeswax, you can kiss that knife goodbye/
I always use a hand grater to cut down my beeswax into manageable sized pieces to melt properly. If the chunks are too big, then it will take forever -- for-freaking-ever -- to melt. So, go out and purchase a hand grater from walmart or possibly the dollar store. once you use this grater on your beeswax, it will forever be your beeswax grater, for you will never be able to clean it properly enough for food preparation. So buy a new grater, one of those ones with four sides and four different sized grater possibilities. Use the side that would make nice cheese for the top of a pizza. Grate your beeswax. It will be a real chore and your hands will get sore doing it, but keep it up until you've grated enough to use. Don't bother grating more than you will immediately use because it will just stick together afterwards.
Use a double boiler to melt your beeswax. It is the safest and sanest way to do so. Again, use a double boiler that you will never use for anything else, because you'll never get the leftover beeswax out of it. Melt it that way, stirring almost constantly. Make sure the beeswax never boils. I don't think it will in a double boiler. I don't remember it ever happening to me. And melt your beeswax only until it is completely melted.
When melting, drop a few bits of beeswax into the pot and wait until it melts until adding more. Then add a few more bits. Wait until that melts. Then add some more. Etc. etc. etc. Eventually, it will all melt.
If you think this process is too ornery to actually do, think about the benefits of just melting it. As it melts, and most beautiful aroma will fill the air and suffuse the room. Melting beeswax smells like no other product on the face of this earth. You will fall under a deep spell of love with this beeswax as it melts in your double boiler. It truly is a lovely scent that you won't soon forget.
And, supergroomer said:
My beeswax I get comes in a 1 lb block. I use a saw to cut in in 1/4 then the grater to shave it into my butter.
