REISHI

Reishi is a medicinal mushroom used as a health tonic and to boost immune function. Fungi Co grow indigenous strains of reishi, Ganoderma spp. for use as a potential mycomaterial as its mycelium is very tough, weight bearing and hardy and also for the home grower to grow their own medicinal mushrooms.

Reishi grows in fantastical ways looking like ribbed antlers from a Dr Seuss creature or a wooden mushroom or a little desert hill growing from a vertical surface at Fungi Co headquarters.

Nina our food guru has developed foods and recipes using our Reishi extract in a tea and a sweet. It has a natural bitter flavour and goes well with coffee and chocolate flavoured foods. She designed these foods for Floriade 2017 and here is her recipe for Reishi Bliss Balls -

Cocoa, Reishi, Walnut Bliss Balls

Makes 25

1 cup walnuts

¼ cup tahini

¼ cup coconut sugar

¼ cup cocoa

4 sachets reishi mushroom powder

½ tsp vanilla essence

Dusting – cocoa, desiccated coconut, crushed pistachios, crushed nuts, sesame seeds

Add all ingredients (apart from dustings) in a food processor whizz up till thoroughly combined.

If too dry add a tiny bit of water till mixture comes together.

Place chosen dustings on separate plates.

With clean hands take teaspoonful of mixture and roll into balls. Then roll in chosen dusting.

Once all are made place in freezer 5 minutes to set and serve.

Store in fridge for up to a week.

I recently watched this video - Mushrooms, Mycology of Consciousness - Paul Stamets, EcoFarm Conference Keynote 2017 at time 55min Paul Stamets the American mycologist, discusses using polypore mushrooms including Ganoderma spp. fed to bees to protect them against mites and viruses with much success.