Chocolate of Immortality
Fall is here, the leaves are changing, days getting shorter, weather getting colder. Its a bitter-sweet season. I love the colors and the nostalgic feelings that linger in the air, but me and cold don't jive very well. When the climate changes so quickly many people end up getting the sniffles, cold and flu. There are always great remedies to alleviate and help move the sickness out of the body, but what is better yet is not getting sick in the first place. One of my favorite tonics to give your immune system some love and support are medicinal mushrooms. Nearly all mushroom have some effect on the immune system including shitake, maitake that you can eat in soups and curries, but some of the most impressive mushrooms aren't readily found in your normal grocer.
Reishi, chaga and turkey tail (shown above) have all been used as medicines going back thousands of years. Unfortunately in many western countries these mushrooms may seem exotic, distant, and fairly unavailable—which is somewhat true. Most of these fungi are local and native to Asian countries or the far north, though reishi, chaga and turkey tail can be found in certain corners of North America.They have been shown to help modulate the immune system, boost white blood cell count and help in detoxification.
Researchers at the University of Minnesota and Bastyr University conducted the study in women with stages I-III breast cancer who had completed radiation therapy or chemotherapy. Results showed that immune function was enhanced in the women who took daily doses of turkey tail in pill form. The researchers reported that the improved immune response was dose dependent and that none of the subjects suffered any adverse effects. The findings were reported in November, 2010, at the International Conference of the Society of Integrative Oncology in New York. That's enough to convince me.
I have been crafting medicinal elixirs for myself for several years, and have been sick but once with the flu in the past five years (I'm knocking on wood and sipping chaga tea as I write this!). Although I love these mushrooms in teas, many of my friends and clients think that they are a bit bitter, or they just don't enjoy drinking tea! So as the song goes "A spoon full of chocolate helps the medicine go down", at least thats what I hear. I've have a simple recipe that tastes amazing and can be eaten as a tasty treat to satisfy your chocolate cravings while simultaneously boosting your bodies resilience. I will link the exact products I use and trust because of the quality and integrity behind the companies.
Chocolate of Immortality
Ingredients
1/4 cup raw local honey
1 tsp your choice of turkey tail, chaga, and reishi extract powders from Real Mushrooms
1/2 tsp vanilla powder
Optional Toppings
chop almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts
sprinkle cacao nibs, chia seeds, or hemp seeds
sprinkle of cinnamon, ginger, or sea salt
Directions
First, prepare a baking trays by lining them with parchment paper.
To prepare the chocolate base, melt the Cacao in a saucepan over double boiler. Once melted Cacao in a bowl add 1/4 cup local honey, mushroom powder and vanilla. Pour this mixture onto baking tray, smoothing the mixture out with a spatula if needed if wanting to make bark or a tablespoon to make single bites.
Sprinkle with toppings of choice and put in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Once set up put in a nice glass container and store in the fridge.
Eat 1-4 bites everyday and enjoy the delicious taste of vitality!
Eat your medicine and enjoy it too!
(If you buy the mushrooms through the link I get a few pennies of commission, but as always I ONLY suggest products I use and trust myself. Trust me I'm obsessed with research and everything I use is with intention and integrity. I am not sponsored by any of the companies) Peace and love