How to Make Home-Made Almond Milk
This is SO easy and so amazingly delicious! Once you learn how to make home-made almond milk you'll never go back to store-bought! They taste so different!
Nothing compares to the scrumptious, delectable, sexy feel and flavor of true almond milk. If you wanna learn how to make home-made almond milk, you're in for a treat, 'cause I'm gonna teach you how to make it!
I call it, The Elixir of The Goddess!
Did you know that commercial almond milks you buy at the store usually only have about 2% almonds? The rest is water, thickeners, fillers. And some even have carrageenan, a thickening agent from seaweed that has been shown to cause inflammation and ulceration of the gut, some say it's even carcinogenic. Gulp! (also used in yogurts and other nut milks, so please read ingredients!)
SO, HOW DO YOU MAKE IT?
No, you don't have to milk each little almond like a tiny cow titty. The process is fun, easy and you can be creative with different flavors, like turmeric and cardamom for an exotic Indian twist, or blueberry for a shot of added color and awesome antioxidants. Sky's the limit here, so let's get started!
INGREDIENTS
1 cup raw almonds. (Soaked overnight with water, a dash of salt and a t-spoon of apple cider vinegar. I get them at Costco.)
4 cups organic Coconut Water (or half coconut/half fresh water)
dash of cinnamon
3-5 drops Sweet Leaf Vanilla Creme Stevia (natural flavored sweetener)
TO DO:
Soak almonds overnight, as mentioned above. In the morning, toss water with all those nasty enzyme inhibitors that would've caused tummy upset and bloating. Rinse.
Toss in the Vitamix (I hope you have one, if not, please hunker down and get one! Honestly, the best investment for your health you can make in the kitchen!) Or try it in your blender, though you'll need to strain the gritty stuff well.
Add 4 cups of coconut water (adds to the nutritional content, natural electrolytes AND flavor!) Note: If you are 100% off sugar, then use fresh water instead.
Dash of cinnamon and 3-5 drops of Vanilla Creme Stevia. (You can use 2 pitted dates - soaked in hot water for 5-10 minutes instead. If you are off sugar, best to stick to natural Stevia.)
Turn it on, and speed up slowly. Then on High for about 30 seconds.
Almost done!
Place a nut milk bag (or cheese cloth, doubled, over a strainer) over a large bowl. I really love Ellie's Best milk bags. They're big and sturdy and easy to clean.
Pour the almond milk in the bag, and close the top.
Now, this is the REALLY FUN part! Get that inner farmer ready... Ye-haa! 'Cause this is the milking part. It won't moo, but almost!
SLOWLY squeeze the mixture, extracting the milk onto the bowl. I say slowly, because if you don't, you will get squirted on the face or on your clothes. Not good.
Squeeze till nothing else comes out, and Ta-da! All done!
It's best to store the milk in a glass bottle. I use a funnel, and this recipe will make slightly more than a quart. So, you get an extra treat; drink whatever's left in the bowl!
If you want to add flavors like the once I mentioned above (blueberry, turmeric, cacao, or your own experiment) do it in the blender AFTER you strain.
Almond milk only lasts about 3-4 days in the fridge. So, I make small batches at a time. This proves it's fresh. The store-bought stuff has preservatives to make it last longer.
Some people ask me if they should use the entire almond with skins or without. Honestly? The taste is smoother and more luscious without them, but only if you have royalty taste buds. (If you're sensitive to lectins, then you will want to remove the skins...)
I used to peel them at first, but I usually don't have time. Having said that, it can be a really beautiful meditation to, one by one, squeeze the skins off. If you want to zone out, I highly recommend it.
When you squeeze the wide end, the skin comes right off, but be careful: the almond can go flying off across the room.
(Great fun if you're husband, partner or kid is annoying you! Just aim and Zing!)
That's it! I know you you will LOVE this luscious almond milk as much as we do!
I'm excited to hear from you. Please let me know in the COMMENTS BELOW if you have any questions about the process. Or how things turned out, OK? Any specialty flavors you came up with?
Cheers! Enjoy!
Big Hug, Eli