Reishi Chocolate Milk Recipe

If you’re the kind of person who mostly goes by gut feelings and doesn’t spend much time analyzing the ingredients lists of their favorite desserts, you might have never noticed how some of the best afternoon drinks in the world are made with mushrooms. Yep, you read that right.

No, we’re not joking! Edible mushrooms are not just an amazing nutritional source – they can also be genuinely yummy too. From mushroom smoothies to coffee, soups, and more, their gentle taste makes them easy to combine with existing recipes and blend in extremely well.

Today, we will take about a particularly special treat to help you wind down after a stressful day: a mushroom chocolate milk recipe! Specifically, we are going to make ours with reishi, one of the most famous culinary mushrooms. 

Reishi Mushroom Benefits

The reishi mushroom isn’t just so special because of its strong and exotic taste. It has also gained fame worldwide for its countless health benefits.

Many of these beneficial superpowers have been known since classical times, when the Chinese and Japanese wrote both scientific documents and poetry praising the fungus’ abilities. But what’s behind all that? Let’s take a look at some of the reishi mushroom benefits.

High Blood Pressure

Elevated blood pressure, or hypertension, is one of the most common cardiovascular problems affecting adults today. According to current estimates, up to a third of the global population might have to deal with high blood pressure at some point in their lives, if they haven’t experienced it already.

A fascinating property of the reishi mushroom that can provide some real relief for those afflicted is its ability to regulate blood pressure. Indeed, reishi mushrooms have been tried in head-to-head comparisons against common blood thinners and antihypertensive drugs. 

The findings? For most patients, the ganoderic acids and other compounds unique to reishi mushrooms do the job just as well as their commercial, lab-made counterparts. And to top it off, even patients who experienced resistance to the commonly prescribed medicines reported improved blood pressure levels after taking reishi.

High Cholesterol

Especially as we age, blood cholesterol levels become only a more crucial indicator of overall health. High levels of “bad” LDL cholesterol are linked with chronic conditions such as fatty liver disease as well as a whole host of other quality-of-life issues.

Reishi doesn’t just help the body get rid of LDL cholesterol – it also regulates the production of HDL. This so-called “good” cholesterol, in turn, breaks down LDL and reduces the risk of heart disease, among many other benefits.

Cardiovascular Disease

Following the last two points, it should be no surprise that the reishi is also a champion in promoting a healthy cardiovascular system. Indeed, the polysaccharides in this super-mushroom have been shown to work wonders in the fight against chronic chest pains, blood clots, circulation issues, clogged arteries, and more.

Liver or Kidney Disease

Reishi fights against the effects of free radicals, which seek to destabilize and compromise our immune system. The mushroom’s powerful antioxidants help to flush our system, and in so doing, it relieves the liver and the kidneys of stress, preventing future damage.

Respiratory Diseases 

The reishi mushroom plays a known role in promoting a strong and healthy set of lungs. Because of this, it’s considered one of the best secret weapons against respiratory diseases. Those who have asthma will be particularly delighted to hear about how the reishi can lessen irritation within the respiratory system.

In practice, this means less pain, less coughing, and overall higher quality of life. 

Viral Infections 

Like many other medicinal mushrooms, reishi is an exceptional remedy for boosting your immune system. It can both prevent and mitigate the effects of existing infections. 

In studies, flu patients were among the demographics that saw the highest degree of improvement of their symptoms by using reishi supplements, with few to no side effects commonly reported.

HIV/AIDS

Amazingly, the reishi mushroom has even been showing promise as an alternative treatment for AIDS caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). 

It can both compliment existing treatments, mitigate some of the negative side effects, and serve as a viable course of its own.

Cancer and Support During Chemotherapy

In many countries, reishi supplements are sometimes used as immunomodulators for people undergoing chemotherapy.

The mushroom is capable of helping the body to manage some of the side effects of the therapeutic procedure. At the same time, it encourages the production of healthy white blood cells, which further work to limit the damage that cancer may cause on the patient’s body in the long run.

Pain for Shingles Outbreaks

A case of shingles can be one of the most excruciatingly painful experiences in your life. Thankfully, there are a wide variety of medications and remedies one can use to manage the symptoms.

Among them, the reishi is not just one of the few that is all-natural and organic – it is also associated with the fewest serious complications. Most patients develop no side effects at all when using reishi for pain relief from shingles outbreaks. 

Note that, unlike pretty much every prescription drug out there, reishi mushrooms analgesics, anti-inflammatory, and antiseptics.

Building Strength and Stamina

Beyond stimulating the immune system and reinforcing the cardiovascular system, the reishi mushroom also interacts with our metabolic processes uniquely.

For many years, reishi has enjoyed popularity as a performance supplement for athletes, a position it shares with hardly any other herb or mushroom – except for perhaps the equally renowned cordyceps.

A reishi-based supplement can boost your athletic performance across the board by funneling more oxygen directly to the muscles and extending physical endurance.

Fatigue

It is only logical that the aforementioned capabilities of the reishi mushroom to make us last longer and push harder in the gym would also apply to those suffering from chronic fatigue.

Indeed, reishi shows a lot of potential in this regard. It can help you stay awake, increase your energy levels, and allow you to retain mental control and focus more easily throughout the day.

Reishi Chocolate Milk Recipe

Now that we know about all the amazing things that the reishi mushroom can do, we bet you’re just as excited to take a look at a cool reishi-based recipe as we are.

For today, we will be making a quick-and-easy reishi chocolate milk recipe

Ingredients

• Fresh milk, 8 ounces. You can use full milk, or any of our favorite non-dairy products such as coconut or almond milk.
• 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder
• 1-3 teaspoons of maple syrup or honey, to taste
• 1 teaspoon of reishi mushroom powder - we recommend Terrasoul Superfoods, Nature Restore, and RealMushrooms for their excellent, 100% organic and value-conscious powdered supplements!
• Optional: 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Equipment Needed

• Blender, whisk, or wooden spoon

Serving Size: 2 servings of one average-sized glass each. 

Estimated Cost: Approx. $20-25

Prep Time: 5 minutes or less

Cooking Time: 5 minutes

Total Time: 5-10 minutes

Nutrition: Approx. 100 calories

Cuisine Type: American-style dessert

Instructions

Take your ingredients, and either add everything to a blender or stir using a large whisk or wooden spoon inside a bowl until smooth. When done, feel free to add some ice cubes on top.

We recommend you serve this chocolate milk as soon as possible. If making in advance, note that you shouldn’t store it in the fridge for longer than a week or so, and that the milk will probably need re-stirring before serving as the chocolate will settle at the bottom after some time.