Whether you’re dairy-free or simply love the taste of almond milk, you’ll love making your own at home.
Homemade almond milk is creamy, convenient, inexpensive, unpasteurized (which means more nutrition) and free of preservatives, artificial flavorings, and sugar.
All you need is a cup of almonds, water, a blender, and a cheesecloth, nut milk bag, or fine mesh strainer.
Ingredients
1 cup raw almonds
2 cups filtered water
Step 1
Place the almonds in a container (I use my blender), and cover with filtered water and 1 teaspoon sea salt. Let stand, uncovered, for 12-24 hours. The longer the almonds soak, the creamier the almond milk.
Step 2
Drain the almonds from their soaking water and rinse thoroughly under cool running water.
Step 3
Blend the almonds with 2 cups of filtered water for 2-5 minutes.
* If you want, you can drink your almond milk now and skip the next step of straining. It has more nutrients and fiber; but a more rustic texture than you may be used to.
Step 4
Put a fine mesh strainer, cheesecloth, or nut milk bag over the top of a pitcher or bowl and pour in your almond mixture.
Step 5
Gather the nut bag or cheese cloth (if using) around the almond meal and twist closed. Squeeze to extract as much almond milk as possible. If using a fine mesh strainer, use clean hands or a wooden spoon to press the almond meal to extract the milk. Make sure you press the cloth to get the last bit of liquid out, as this is the creamiest, yummiest bit of the milk.
Look at that, you made almond milk! Yay you! 🙂
But wait, there may be more:
Simply add another 2 cups of water to the leftover almond meal and blend again. This milk will be more watery, but still quite delicious.
Yummy Variations are as easy as adding these extra ingredients to the blender:
Sweetened Almond Milk: Stevia, honey, or maple syrup to taste or 4 pitted dates (let dates sit in hot water first for easier blending) + 1 tsp vanilla
Richer, Creamier Almond Milk: 1 tbs coconut butter or raw almond butter
Vanilla Almond Milk: 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla powder
Strawberry Almond Milk: ½ cup fresh or frozen strawberries + 1 tsp vanilla + sweetener of choice (stevia, honey, dates)
Chocolate Almond Milk: 1-2 Tbsp cacao or cocoa powder + 1 tsp vanilla + sweetener of choice
Cinnamon Almond Milk: 1 tsp ground cinnamon + 1 tsp vanilla + sweetener of choice.
Storing your almond milk: Fresh almond milk can be kept in the fridge for up to about three days.
*Tip: Freeze leftover almond milk in ice cube trays to keep for longer and easily pop into protein shakes. 🙂
P.S. Bonus! You can use your leftover almond meal! The leftover almond meal in your cheesecloth can be added to oatmeal, muffins, and smoothies as it is.
To store it for later, spread the meal flat on a cookie sheet and bake at a low temperature until completely dry, about 2-3 hours. Keep in an airtight container and use it in any recipe that calls for almond meal.
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Thank you!
