Recipe: Mineral-Balanced Lion’s Mane Coffee for Focus & Nerve Support

The Forage Morning Brew

A Mineral-Balanced, Neuro-Supportive Coffee

Modern coffee culture treats caffeine like a performance drug. The traditional approach treated it as a ritual — buffered, mineralized, and paired with fats and proteins to support the nervous system rather than tax it.

This brew restores that balance.

Why This Works

This recipe is designed to:

• Reduce caffeine-induced mineral loss
• Support focus and nerve repair
• Provide sustained energy without jitters
• Honor traditional preparation principles

Every ingredient has a purpose.

Ingredients (1 serving)

• Fresh brewed organic dark-roast coffee
• 1/2 tsp Lion's Mane mushroom powder (fruiting body preferred)
• 1/2 tsp raw, organic cacao powder
• 1 scoop grass-fed, kosher collagen
• 1 thin slice grass-fed butter

Optional:

• Pinch of cinnamon or vanilla (for warmth and digestion)

Preparation

1. Brew coffee using filtered water
2. Add Lion's Mane, cacao, and collagen to a mug or blender
3. Pour hot coffee over ingredients
4. Add butter
5. Blend or whisk until smooth and lightly frothy

When to Drink

• Best with or after breakfast
• Ideal for morning focus or creative work
• Avoid late afternoon if caffeine-sensitive

Ingredient Intelligence

Lion’s Mane (Hericium erinaceus)
Supports nerve growth factor (NGF), focus, memory, and long-term cognitive resilience. Fat improves absorption of key neuroactive compounds (hericenones).

Raw Cacao
Provides magnesium, polyphenols, and theobromine — smoothing caffeine stimulation while supporting vascular and mitochondrial health.

Grass-Fed Butter
Supplies saturated fats that buffer caffeine’s stress response, improve fat-soluble compound absorption, and support nervous system stability.

Collagen
Adds glycine and proline to support connective tissue, gut lining, and neurotransmitter balance — particularly important alongside stimulants.

Dark Roast Coffee
Lower in acidity and higher in antioxidant compounds than light roasts. Easier on the gut and adrenals.

A Note on Balance

Coffee does not need to be eliminated — it needs to be contextualized.

When paired with minerals, fats, and protein, it becomes a tool for clarity rather than depletion.

This is how stimulants were traditionally used: in service of the body, not at its expense.

Forage Perspective

At Forage, we don’t optimize for stimulation.
We optimize for long-term nervous system integrity.

This brew is not a hack.
It’s a return.