Adaptogenic Edibles
This section includes a few recipe ideas working with adaptogens to make soups and goo balls. Goo balls are essentially sweet concoctions that mix herbal powder with honey and other ingredients to make a delicious way of taking in herbs.
Soups
One of the best ways to work with adaptogens is to add them to soups and broths to strengthen the medicinal value of the meal. This is a common way of taking herbs in traditional cultures in India, China and elsewhere. When herbs are taken in the form of soup, the nutritional value is easily absorbed. Those with poor digestive function, gut permeability problems and absorption issues, soups are one of the fundamental ways to heal.
I already described how to make herbed bone broth in the section on nutritional tonic recipes. With that broth as a base, one can then make a variety of soups. Here are a couple ideas:
Ginseng potency Soup
This is a great soup for someone who appears cold, deficient, lacking in stamina and endurance. They may have problems with poor libido, memory and concentration. Remember the stock is already infused with two potent adaptogens (codonopsis and astragalus) so we are already working with a nicely strengthening tonic broth We are just augmenting it at this time.
Ingredients:
6 cups of herbed bone broth
1 ounce sliced asian ginseng
15 shitaki and maitake mushrooms
2 tablespoons goji berry
2 pounds of chicken, sliced into small chunks.
8 cloves garlic
1 whole onion, diced
1 tablespoon grated ginger
3 chopped carrots
6 medium chopped potatoes
salt
pepper
Sauté the onion, carrots and chicken with two tablespoons of coconut oil for several minutes. Then add the garlic and ginger and continue to sauté for a couple minutes more. Then add to a large pot and add the herbed bone broth, the potatoes and the chinese herbs (Ginseng, goji berries). Bring pot to a boil and then simmer for a couple hours. Add salt and pepper to taste. Yum. You can also substitute american ginseng for asian ginseng if you want the energetics to be a little cooler and less stimulating.
Mushroom Vitality Soup
This is one my favorite ways to help people to strengthen and heal. Because it is made into a puree it is one of the most easily digestible foods available, and because it is made with herbed bone broth it is incredibly nutritious.
Ingredients:
6 cups herbed bone broth
20 small fresh medicinal mushrooms (shitake, maitake, etc)
8 chopped cloves garlic
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 whole onion
6 stalks of celery, chopped
6 chopped potatoes
1 tablespoon ashwaghanda powder
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
salt
pepper
Saute the onion for a few minutes, then add the garlic and ginger and sauté for another minute or two. Then add them to a pot with the potatoes, celery and mushrooms. Add the rest of the herbs and the broth and bring to a boil. Then simmer for about 45 minutes. Then pour mix into a blender and mix until ingredients have been pureed. Remove and return to the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste
Adaptogenic goo balls
In these recipes you are essentially working with adaptogenic in the form of powders and mixing them in with other ingredients to make tasty “goo balls.” They can be refrigerated and eaten as both a snack and a tonic.
“Restore” Goo Balls:
Ingredients:
1 cup of almond butter
1/2 cup of honey (local/raw)
1 tablespoon of aswhaghanda powder
1 tablespoon of eleuthero powder
1 tablespoon of astragalus powder
2 teaspoons of moringa
1/2 cup of coconut
Add almond butter and honey together in a bowl. Make sure they are mixed well together and then start adding in the adaptogen powders. Once all the ingredients are blended, form them into smaller goo balls. Once finished, roll them evenly in the coconut. Store in the refrigerator.
Aswaghanda, eleuthero and astragalus will blend nicely to bring a calmer and more relaxed nervous system, improve stamina, endurance and immune system function. The moringa is highly nutritional and will together the ingredients are deeply restorative for those who have experienced a lot of stress and trauma.
“Uplift” Goo Balls:
Ingredients:
1 cup of almond butter1 tablespoon
1/2 cup of honey (local/raw)
1 tablespoon of cacao powder
1 tablespoon rhodiola
1 tablespoon ashwaghanda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup of coconut
Follow the same directions as above. This recipe is more energizing and stimulating and should be offered to those who are more cool, lethargic and melancholic. Avoid in people who are already highly stimulated and anxious.
