The 411 on Functional Mushrooms + My Superfood Hot Chocolate Recipe

Alright guys, let’s talk ‘shrooms. And not the hallucinogenic kind. I’m talking functional mushrooms. You may have stumbled upon words like ‘reishi’, ‘cordyceps’ and ‘chaga’, so I’m going to do my best to break it down for you in this blog post. First, a bit of background. I started taking functional mushrooms earlier this year after hearing about their incredible benefits (more on that later). You guys know me, I’m all about research and experimentation when it comes to wellness trends. I waited almost 6 months before writing this blog post because I wanted to be a guinea pig and see if I loved it before sharing details with you. Well, I’m pleased to report that I get the hype, and today, I’ll tell you why:

Functional Mushrooms 101
Mushrooms are one of the most nutrient-dense foods in the world. And there are so many different variations. Functional mushrooms are immune-boosting, nutrient-packed, disease-fighting superfoods with incredible benefits. There’s one kind of functional mushroom that you may already be familiar with: shiitake!

While functional mushrooms have started to gain popularity in North America over the last year (it was ranked #3 on Whole Foods’ 2018 food trend report), they’ve been a mainstay in Chinese medicine for years.

You may be wondering how to integrate them into your diet. Functional mushrooms are a little different from the mushrooms you’d find at a grocery store. You can’t exactly make a reishi pasta (or maybe you can, I just haven’t tried it). You can usually find functional mushrooms in powder or pill form. Or, you can buy them and brew them into a tea.

If you decide to consume the powder form, you can integrate them into your coffee, matcha, or drink of choice. You could even consider sprinkling some on your food – the options are endless. They don’t have a strong flavour, so they won’t alter the flavour of your favourite drink.

Alternatively, you can consume them in pill form, which is essentially just the powder form having been encapsulated. This is a great option if you’re traveling somewhere and are really set on taking functional mushrooms no matter what. Personally, I’m not all that fussed. I take a couple of satchets of Four Sigmatic’s mushroom hot cacao with me when I travel, and if I run out, it isn’t the biggest deal.

What are its benefits?
In the world of functional mushrooms, the three that I’m most familiar with are chaga, reishi, and cordyceps. There are a ton more, like Lion’s Mane and Turkey Tail, but these are the three that I’ll break down for you.

Chaga
Chaga is packed with anti-oxidants and has incredible immune-boosting properties that can help fight viruses, colds and infections. It also has anti-inflammatory properties, which I’m a big fan of. Inflammation is often a top cause of disease (and it makes you age faster), so I actively try to integrate as many anti-inflammatory foods into my diet as I can. Chaga mushrooms are also very nutrient-dense, and are packed with Vitamin D, potassium, and B Vitamins, to name a few.

Reishi
Also called ‘ling zhi’ in China, Reishi is known as the ‘mushroom of immortality’. A pretty hefty title. Aside from its incredible immune-boosting properties, Reishi promotes sleep and relaxation. It is an adaptogen which has the ability to soothe nerves, so it’s best had when you want to chill out or are ready to catch some ZZZ’s.

Cordyceps
If you’re looking to increase your energy levels, then Cordyceps is the functional mushroom for you. In Chinese medicine, they’ve been used to increase the production of red blood cells and fight fatigue. They’re said to boost athletic performance, promote heart health and decrease inflammation. You can check out this article for a detailed analysis if you’re interested. Cordyceps also contain compounds which aid in regulating blood sugar levels and fight insulin sensitivity. I like to take Cordyceps around mid-day when I feel a bit of a slump. It gives me that extra boost of energy I need to get through the day.

Superfood Hot Chocolate Recipe
Okay, so know that you know what functional mushrooms are, I wanted to share one of my favourite ways to integrate it into my diet, which is through a superfood hot chocolate.

All you need to do is stick the following ingredients into a blender and blend for about 15-30 seconds:

• 1 satchet Four Sigmatic Reishi Hot Cacao mix
• 1 tsp Gold Nugget Ghee’s chocolate honey ghee
• 1 MCT oil
• 1 scoop Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides
• Sprinkle of organic cinammon

Have you guys used functional mushrooms? What’s your favourite kind?