Apr 22 2010
Homemade Almond Milk Recipes: How to Make Your Own Almond Milk
Ah, the joys of almond milk. Perfect for those looking to increase their nutritional intake, reduce their calorie count or simply avoid cow’s milk in general. It’s also a great alternative for those looking to avoid food allergies (soy) and intolerances (lactose) but still love what milk provides. I have both the pre-described food related problems and thus originally looked at almond milk as a possible alternative.
For those wondering, no almond milk doesn’t quiet taste the same as regular cow’s milk. It will have more of a nutty taste, which should be obvious. With a little work you can easily make almond milk have about the same consistency and it usually only takes a strainer. Now for what you need:
Tools:
Blender
Strainer or sieve
Container to strain into
Container for finished almond milk
Ingredients:
Cup of almonds
5-6 cups of Water
That’s right, there are only two necessary ingredients to almond milk. There are, however, a few extra ingredients we could use to add sweetness and consistency to the milk but we’ll go over those a little later. Keeping it simple for now, throw the almonds into the blender, along with the water, and blend until the mixture gets a milky smooth look to it. Having a lot of froth on top is fine. Also, you may have to shake the blender a couple times as almonds are just the right size to slip under the blades.
Now it’s best to strain the almond milk in my opinion, unless you don’t mind some chunkiness in your milk. Go ahead and strain the almond and water mixture into an extra container. You’ll have a lot of almond stuff leftover in the strainer; you can be creative and use this for other things if you like but it’s not necessary for the milk. To finish, strain one more time into the container you wish to store the almond milk in. Be sure to refrigerate and shake or mix well before use.
Extra Things to Consider
So, this kind of almond milk may be too plain for most people particularly if you’re not fond of the nutty taste. There are ways we can fix this problem. Sweetness is usually the first thing people miss when looking for a milk alternative, so adding a little bit can really make a difference. If brown or refined sugar isn’t an option, then using an artificial one like Splenda or Crystal Light is acceptable. I personally prefer to use fruit to add sweetness and nutritional depth, however. Strawberries work well, as do bananas. Pitted dates are also highly suggested by others, although I’ve yet to try this myself.
If you have any other suggestions in regards to making almond milk please let me know as I’m always looking for new twists to a simple recipe.