Almond Milk

Almonds
Water
Sweetener/flavorings if desired

A blender (regular or high speed)

For vanilla almond milk (my usual) add a few dates and a teaspoon of vanilla.

Vanilla Almond Milk (yields 2-3 cups or so)

1 cup almonds, soaked 8-12 hours beforehand if it’s possible
4 cups water
6 dates or 1/4 cup agave
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (or the contents of a vanilla bean)

Begin by soaking your nuts in some water, if you can. Eight hours is ideal, but an hour is fine if that’s what you’ve got!

Next, rinse off your almonds and discard the soak water. Add the almonds and the other ingredients (water, dates, vanilla) to a regular blender or a VitaMix. Blend them on high speed for a minute or so.  At this point, you can serve the nut milk exactly as is, enjoy a good shake before pouring!

If you prefer a smooth texture, give it a strain through a nut milk bacg or cheesecloth.



They’re cheap, conveniant, and can be used again and again (unlike cheesecloth) to strain nut milks and soups. You can purchase them from One Lucky Duck and other raw stores on the web.

To use, simply place the the nut milk bag or cheesecloth over the mouth of your container, leaving a generous overhang and allowing the strainer to droop about halfway down into the container. I used a large mason jar as my container:
Within forty-five minutes (or, ideally, an hour or two), all of the liquid will have been strained, and you’ll be left with almond pulp.

You can use this for raw cookies, for nut pates, or simply as a nut-butter-like treat.

Meanwhile, you’ll have three or so cups of fresh, delicious almond milk, ready to enjoy in smoothies, in soups, or plain! It should last about 2-3 days in the fridge.

There are tons of ways to enjoy nutmilk. You can make it with cashews (for a super neutral taste), with hemp seeds (protein rich and distinctive), macadamias, or pecans. And you can adjust seasonings to taste.

Chocolate nut milk: To the recipe for vanilla almond milk, add 2 tbsp raw cacao nibs or unsweetened cocoa powder

Cinnamon milk: To the recipe for vanilla almond milk, add 1 tsp cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg

Chai milk: To the recipe for vanilla almond milk, add 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon garam masala, and 1/4 tsp. nutmeg

Sugar-free vanilla milk: In place of the dates, add stevia to taste

So…what are you guys waiting for?! Stop dropping pennies on store bought nut milks, and get blending!! Once you experience the joy of homemade almond (and other nut) milks, you’ll never want to go back.

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