Chef Enid Parham may be known to many for pioneering professional cannabis cooking in Michigan, as well as for speaking out about cannabis criminal justice reform and sustainable farming. But before realizing her calling, Parham worked in notable Detroit kitchens including those of Wright & Co., Brooklyn Street Local, and Punch Bowl Social.

Her fascination with the herb would lead her to California to train under top cannabis chefs Cheri Sicard and Andrea Drummer.

The Detroit resident started Lucky Pistil, her cannabis catering and events company, in 2019, the year after Michigan legalized recreational cannabis. During that time, she says, many of her peers breaking into the industry possessed a gold rush mentality and weren’t in it for the long haul.

“A lot of people jumped on the bandwagon at first, but they weren’t serious,” Parham says. She brings up psilocybin mushrooms, which are decriminalized in Ann Arbor, Detroit, and Hazel Park. “With mushrooms, it was just like ‘Oh, here’s another bandwagon.’ And then everybody just left the weed community high and dry.”

But Parham hasn’t. In 2025, she continues to use her knowledge and experience to assist and educate others entering the cannabis space and finish what she and her fellow trailblazers started.

Coaxing the desired benefits from each strain, Parham divides calculated doses between delicious bites of sweet potato waffles with duck confit and strawberry balsamic jam and citrus, garlic, and herb-crusted lamb chops with a yogurt cumin sauce and spicy citrus-olive relish. She uses seasonal ingredients in her dishes and has a variety of vegan and vegetarian options available.

Her shrimp BLT uses a THC-infused lemon dill aioli and is easy to make. She uses THC drops to simplify the dosage for beginners. The aioli makes an equally flavorful dipping sauce for cooked meats and vegetables. Learn how to make that dish at home with this recipe.

This story originally appeared in the April 2025 issue of Hour Detroit magazine. To read more, pick up a copy of Hour Detroit at a local retail outlet. Our digital edition will be available on April 7.