Homemade milk?! That seems too difficult and too involved.

That was my first reaction when I heard about people making nut milks at home. That is, until I realized that ALL of the nut milks that are available for me to purchase have Carrageenan in them, an ingredient linked to inflammation, diabetes and cancer.

Somehow, the time and effort issue seemed to dissipate and I became eager to get to nut milk making!

In my first attempt at making nut milk, I chose a recipe from the cookbook, Afro-Vegan, by Bryant Terry, a local Oakland man.

Along with his recipe, Terry explains that nut milk isn’t such a new fad after all, noting that it has been made since medieval times because of it’s ability to stay fresh longer than milk made from animals.

My first attempt at making nut milk was a success and I still have a bit left, days later, in a mason jar in my fridge. I’ve used it for cereal, with cookies and cake and may use the rest for baking. Whatever you use it for, you’re sure to enjoy the simple, subtle flavors and the pure satisfaction of making something otherwise reserved for dairy farmers and professional chefs and bakers.

I hope you enjoy the taste and process of making the milk as much as I did and stay tuned for a future recipe using that leftover nut pulp so don’t throw it away, throw it in your freezer!

What you’ll need: 

A blender (I used my food processor and wrapped a kitchen towel around it to keep from overflowing. It doesn’t blend as well so I had to blend for a longer time but it still worked well)

Cheese Cloth (This isn’t food it’s actually white material used for straining. At most grocery stores and health food stores they’ll know what you’re asking for and will be able to direct you accordingly)

Mixing Bowl

Large Mason jar for storing milk

Recipe:

*Please use all organic ingredients if possible 

*Adapted from Afro-Vegan cookbook 

Makes 4 cups

1 1/2 cups raw almonds, soaked in water overnight and blanched *see below for blanching instructions

3 1/2 cups filtered water

4 Medjool dates, pitted and chopped

My Dates of choice 🙂 Tip: Notice that there’s a non-GMO label but ALL products that are certified Organic ARE non-GMO, so no label needed.

Pinch of sea salt

Steps: 

Soak almonds in water overnight. Make sure that the water covers the almonds.

Drain almonds and rinse in cool water.

Boil 1 1/2 cups of water and pour over soaked almonds and let sit for one minute.

Drain almonds, rinse and pat dry on kitchen towel and slip off the skins.

Combine all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Using a mixing bowl and your cheese cloth, cover the bowl with the cloth, securing with rubber band if you need to, and pour blended mixture over the cheese cloth into the bowl.

Be sure to squeeze out as much liquid as you can from the mixture into the cheese cloth.

The moment you’ve been waiting for-squeezing out the milk! I used a small sandwich bag to use as a glove to squeeze out the milk. 

Transfer milk into a mason jar and refrigerate for at least an hour to make sure it’s nice and cold. Always shake your jar before using/drinking the milk as it separates in the jar.

Enjoy!

The finished product-Almond Milk in the mason jar with leftover Almond Pulp for future recipes.