Author Biography
Jessica Catalano is a professional Cannabis Chef who is classically trained, a cannabis edibles expert, recipe developer, food writer, the pioneer of strain-specific cannabis cuisine, RYT-200 yoga instructor (restorative yoga and chair yoga certifications), and certified Ayurveda specialist. She is a Medical Cannabis and Cannabis Lifestyle advocate who has combined her two loves of food and cannabis into stylish medicated dishes for Medical Cannabis patients. Catalano holds three culinary degrees: Pastry Arts, Culinary Arts, and Food Service Management that she earned while living in Colorado. Between her education, experience in the bakery and restaurant industry, impressive cannabis industry working experience, and her knowledge of cannabis, she has been called the “OG Cannabis Chef” by many.
Catalano pioneered strain-specific cannabis cuisine for flavor, the first chef in the world to publicly do so, by infusing terpenes into cooking and baking via strain-specific recipes to elevate the taste in the edibles she creates. For example, Lemon Kush can be paired with Vietnamese Spring Rolls. By doing this, the Lemon Kush will impart a lemony taste with floral and mint undertones which deepens the flavors in this dish because of the similar taste profiles already present in the ingredients. This also helps patients to understand the importance of terpene flavor profiles in recipes for a more enjoyable experience and how each strain will affect their bodies.
Currently, Catalano is the Food Writer for the international SKUNK Magazine and former cover girl for Tokin’ Female of the Month (Skunk Magazine Volume 8, Issue 3). In addition to SKUNK Magazine, she writes for Exhale Magazine as a cannabis recipe contributor. She also has contributed cannabis recipes to Diane Fornbacher’s LadyBud Magazine, to the national Cannabis Now Magazine from its inception, and served as a Culture writer for Weedmaps.
Catalano was also named Stoner Girl of Winter 2015 by the Stoner Girl’s Guide. She is the former Cannabis Chef at Cultivating Spirits who taught the Cooking with Cannabis Class as well as the Sensational Fusion Private Dinners. She cooked for and co-hosted the first cannabis pairing dinner at the 2015 Aspen X Games with the Cultivating Spirits family. Catalano has cooked for celebrities such as Snoop Dogg in Aspen and has served as a judge for the Denver Hightimes U.S Cannabis Cup in 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2016 for Edibles, Topicals, and CBD products. She is also a former reviewer for Seattle products on “The Proper Cannabis Committee” for A Proper High.
She has appeared on TLC, Munchies VICE, and Al Jazeera. Her work has been mentioned in Vogue Magazine, Vice, Al Jazeera, Brazil’s Carta Capital Magazine, Buzzfeed, the Associated Press, The Guardian, Business Insider, StarChef’s Rising Stars Magazine, Culture Magazine, Skunk Magazine, Cannabis Now Magazine, Ladybud Magazine, FSR Magazine, Denver Westword, the Aspen Times, the Summit Daily, the Cannabist, the Stoner Girls Guide, and many more. She has also done cannabis food writing for StickyGuide, Releaf Magazine, Smell the Truth, The Nug, PROHBTD, Whaxy, Stuff Stoners Like, the Smoking Bud, Starchef’s, Leafly, High Times Magazine, VICE, MUNCHIES, Colorado’s very own weed-rag The Daily Doobie, and many other publications.
As a Medical Cannabis patient herself, she has extensive knowledge since early 1997 for medicinal purposes. She continues to strive for excellence both in cooking, baking and Medical Cannabis knowledge. Her goal is to help as many Medical Cannabis patients as she possibly can creating a better quality of life for them.
Published Works
Upcoming Works
The Ganja Kitchen Revolution (2nd edition)
Social Media
Instagram: @chefjessicacatalano
Twitter: @JessicaCatalano