The magic of mushrooms! Here are Tonya’s helpful tips, favorite recipes, and takes on the delicate world of mushrooms and being a Sustainable Forager.
Foraging Tips
1. Respect and honour nature, first and foremost! We are guests.
2. Beware of unidentified mushrooms Never, ever (!!) eat an unidentified mushroom. If you are going to consume a wild mushroom it’s imperative that an expert forager has identified it for you.
3. Don’t over-forage Always ensure you leave more behind than what you are taking. Don’t take more than one sample of the same mus
4. If you see a grouping of mushrooms... Don’t pick them all. Allow others to enjoy the mushrooms during their walks in the woods.
7. Most important: have fun! Take a deep breath, soak in the aromatic woods and nature’s compounds that heal us.
Tonya’s Chagacinno Recipe!
Ingredients:
- 1.5 cup brewed Chaga Tea
- 1 tbsp cacao powder
- 1/2 cup coconut milk (warmed up), or milk of choice
- 1 tsp mesquite
- 1 tsp maple syrup, honey, or sweetener of choice
Method
- brew chaga. Add 2 tsp of Chaga mushroom pieces to 8 cups of boiling water. Reduce heat.
- Simmer on low and allow Chaga to steep for up to 6 hours. Do not boil brewed mixture.
- Strain Chaga. You can brew Chaga up to 6 times, or until the water no longer extracts dark pigments. Store used Chaga in the freezer in between batches.
- Combine all ingredients together in a blender and blend on high. Let the coziness ensue!
The Fantastic Five!
Tonya has a lot to say about these 5 special mushrooms, each having totally unique benefits.
Reishi
All hail Reishi, the Queen of functional mushrooms. As an adaptogen, Reishi helps support energy and resistance to stress, and may support sleep, the immune system, and liver function. In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) Reishi is known as the herb of immortality…must we go on?
Tonya's Take: "The queen supreme! Invite this mushroom into your life and human vessel and see her magic transform and balance your body and mind. She is known as the mushroom of spiritual potency. Seeing is believing and believing is seeing. This is my favourite mushroom of all time! As with anything natural, commit to daily consumption and stay consistent."
Lion’s Mane
The Lion’s Mane mushroom has long been a health and culinary staple in Asian cultures. It features prominently in TCM , and is also used in India, Japan and Korea. Lion's Mane improves cognitive health (it’s THE mushroom for brain health), gut health, and the immune system.
Tonya's Take: "Lion's Mane, the people's mushroom! We're all so busy, so stimulated and our minds tend to run wild unless we tame them and get our minds to work with us, instead of against us. This mushroom used to be used by monks to help them concentrate during meditation. Take this mushroom in the morning to support your mental stamina for the whole day."
Chaga
Known as the King of mushrooms, Chaga is the most popular fungus in Northern European traditional medicine. Raw Chaga is inedible so, in order to be consumed, it must be extracted in the form of a tea or tincture (check out our Chagacinno and Chaga Tea recipes left!). Chaga has a high antioxidant content which promotes longevity. Compounds unique to chaga also have anti-diabetic, antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties.
Tonya's Take: "To know Chaga is to know a master. Sublime. Solid as a rock. The birch tree that it grows on is medicinal, powerful and is considered a sacred tree in mythology with protective powers. The birch is willing to grow where nothing else can. Chaga is filled with immune boosting compounds that come from a competitive ecosystem. Fungi provide the forest with a nervous system, an immune system and a communication system. They boost our immune system because they've been boosting the immune system of the planet across the ages! Chaga reigns in the Queendom of nature."
Cordyceps
Cordyceps are also known as “Himalayan Gold” due to their rarity in nature. Lucky for us, one variety that shares its wild properties can be sustainably grown in laboratories. Used in TCM to balance yin and yang of the kidneys, Cordyceps are also scientifically linked to stabilized energy levels and enhanced sex drive.
Tonya's Take: "Experiment taking this mushroom before you exercise and are active. It's been shown to increase cellular ATP (our energy molecule!). It's also a powerful adaptogen helping to support stress and smooth energy. Want to feel passionate, inspired, creative and up your sex drive? Chi is chi is chi. Strengthen your overall energy with cordyceps!"
