Nut milks are a healthy alternative to soy and cow milk products! However, processed almond and coconut milks in the grocery stores still have some strange and scary ingredients! Making your own nut milks with natural and healthy ingredients gives you full awareness of what you are putting into your body. Making your own nut milks is also so much fun and much easier than you may think!
With all the environmental toxins we are now faced with, eating and preparing raw and vegan foods is a way we can support our bodies in detoxing toxins and sustaining peace with our environment and other beings we share this planet with. There are also health benefits in replacing dairy products with non-dairy alternatives. Plus, nut milks are delicious and offer a variety of unique flavors and textures!
Almond Milk Recipe: You can use this same recipe and ratio for any nut milk or hemp milk. What you will need: Food Processor, VitaMix, or Blender. Fine Strainer (optional), clean water and your choice of nut, maybe a date or two, or other super foods such as maca and cacao.
Get bulk organic raw almonds or cashews or hemp seeds or any nut you would like to make milk out of.
Soak Almonds for at least 8 hours in clean water (I like to soak almonds over night, and make my nut milks in the morning). Perfect for my morning fruit smoothies!
Peel off the brown shell coverings on almonds exposing the white meat of the nut. Soaking and peeling nuts can assist in digestion, so digestion is less rancid, and produces a better pH balance result. Peeling the shell on almonds also allows for a smoother and creamier texture. The peeling is fun too, the almonds will jump out of their shells, so be ready for some to fly!
Use 2:1 ratio of water to nuts, for example 2 cups of water to 1 cup of soaked and peeled almonds.
Place water and nuts in food processor or blender and blend till smooth. I also sometimes add a pitted date for natural sweetening. I will sometimes add other superfoods such as cacao (my favorite!) or maca for taste and nutrients. I use a heaping spoonful of cacao to make a chocolate nut milk. Maca is a excellent superfood that is helpful for balancing hormones and is great for both women and men.
I personally like the gritty texture of having some bits of nuts in my milk. If you want a smooth and watery milk, strain the nut milk through a fine strainer, or use a cheese cloth. I personally feel using a cheese cloth is messy and time consuming. But some people dig it.
I store my nut milk in mason jars and use it for other recipes and meals such as sauces, smoothies, etc. It is incredible! I find that I make nut milk 2-3 times a week, and that they last for several days.
By Shannon Connell
Shannon is a certified Jivamukti, Power, Hot Yoga, and Mindfulness Meditation Instructor, Usui and Karuna Reiki Master Teacher, and Registered Psychotherapist. She honors the interconnectedness between All-beings and All-things and is passionate about participating and supporting her community in physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. Visit her at her website www.shannonconnellhealth.com.
Support your healthy body with the Yoga for Detox, Cleansing, and Vitality program!