High Times Greats: Chef Ra’s Worldwide High Times Thanksgiving Feast

The late, great Chef Ra with a recipe for a truly communal Thanksgiving from the November, 1988 issue of High Times.
High Times Greats: Chef Ra's Worldwide High Times Thanksgiving Feast
Chef Ra/ James Wilson

In the November, 1988 edition of High Times, Chef Ra (1950 – 2006) gave us a recipe for cannabis-infused “Rasta Pasta Alfredo Fettuccini.”


Once upon a time, there was a group of dudes and dudettes just hangin’ around, smokin’ a few doobies. We were wondering what we were gonna do with ourselves a couple days before Thanksgiving. Hell, we knew that we weren’t Indians. And we surely couldn’t be Pilgrims. But somehow, we wanted to consummate the same togetherness that those folks did in the old days. But we wanted to put a freaky accent to it.

After passing the peace pipe for a few more hours, Chef Ra had a brilliant mental flash. Most of our friends were leaving town to have Thanksgiving dinner with their parents and family, leaving us hardcore freaks behind. So I said to myself, “Why not have the First Annual Freaky Friends Thanksgiving Bash?”

The idea snowballed. A very rotund hippie earth-mother named Big Susie took Chef Ra’s idea and ran with it. She took the Pied Piper’s position in front of our ragtag group and said, “Let me lead you to the land of bountiful munchie delights, you hungry freaks! ”

And so a grand tradition was born that day, and has continued ever since. This year, Chef Ra proposes to all of the readers of High Times to join together with us this Thanksgiving with the largest Freaky Friends Fest Feast in history. We’re gonna break away from the chains of antiquity and put the “Thanks” back into the “Giving.”

The first thing you have to do is find a place to hold the meal. It doesn’t have to be the traditional “chestnuts roasting on an open fire” homey fantasy trip. Be creative. Hold the party in an open bar, a friend’s house, hell—rent the local VFW! Then decorate the spot with tie-dyed banners and obnoxious-colored crepe-paper strung out all over the place. Maybe throw in some origami hangin’ from the ceiling.

The object of the fest is to be about art, communication, and cross-cultural revolution just as much as it is about chowing down. Let’s move away from the me-generation yuppie bullshit selfishness. How many times have you seen people show up at a gathering or a meal and not contribute a damn thing, not even a joint? Well, it’s time for the “me-attitude” shit to end! It’s time to reach back for our roots, our communal hippadelic traditions. Let’s be about caring again. Social living is the best policy!

Put the United Nations flag up outside the crib. Pick a few folks from the colors of the rainbow different than your own and invite them to the party. Invite a long-lost friend you haven’t seen in ages, and someone who lost his or her job. Pick a homeless person you know in your neighborhood and invite them over for chow. This doesn’t have to be a patronizing affair. Hell, maybe you’ll make some new friends.

Chef Ra wants EVERYBODY to join the party. This is the biggest people’s party ever! Learn to party and then learn to love to party! And make sure you cook one of Chef Ra’s cosmic recipes for all the people. My one year anniversary issue recipe is…

Rasta Pasta Alfredo Fettuccini

  • 4 chopped cloves of FRESH garlic
  • 1/4 cup of FRESH basil (basil in Greek means “king”, but we know what herb is king!)
  • 1/2 cup FRESH parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 lb. egg fettuccini
  • 1 stick of butter
  • 1/2 cup of heavy cream
  • 1/4 oz. fine green sinsi

Cook rasta pasta fettuccini noodles 7-9 minutes in boiling water. Set noodles aside, still sitting in warm water. Melt butter in double boiler setup, making sure not to burn or overheat butter. Add sinsi to butter and let simmer for ten minutes. Take a large bowl, drain egg fettuccini, and put the drained noodles into a large bowl or pot. Then add the herb butter with the heavy cream, basil, and parmesan cheese to the fettuccini in the bowl. Toss mixture well in the bowl. And start jammin’ on it right away!

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