Photo by Annaliese Bischoff
Provenance of Dish
I have loved experimenting with ideas for the lassi and making the drink easy. This idea of making a mushroom lassi came from the inspiration of brewing mushroom tea, teeming with health benefits. I decided to make a strong brew of chaga and reishi, sweetened and spiced, into convenient ice cubes for easy lassi-making drinks.
Recipe
Ingredients
For the Power Ice Cubes
1 walnut size amount of chaga chunks (Inonotus obliquus)
1 walnut size amount of reishi mushroom (Ganoderma lucidum)
1 ½ cups of water
2 tablespoons of honey (tupelo) or maple syrup
½ teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon finely grated ginger
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground black cardamom
½ cup of oat milk
For the Lassi
1 banana
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon of cacao powder
2 "power" mushroom ice cubes
1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup, to taste
Ground cacao nibs, optional
Instructions
For the Power Mushroom Ice Cubes-
1. Add about a walnut size amount of broken chaga chunks and reishi chunks to a saucepan. Pour 1 1/2 cups water over and bring to a boil over medium heat.
2. Lower the heat and simmer for half an hour.
3. After 30 minutes of brewing, just remove from heat and allow it to sit for a few more minutes. The tea should have a deep brown color.
4. Strain and then stir in honey or maple syrup, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, and oat milk. Let cool and pour into a standard 16 unit ice cube tray (1 oz. per cube). Freeze. This will be enough to make 8 drinks.
For the Lassi
1. Place a banana, yogurt, cacao powder, ice cubes, and optional additional honey or syrup in a blender and frappé.
2. Garnish with ground cacao nibs if desired.
