How to Make Your Own Nut Milk

At first, the only alternative to dairy milk was soy milk, and the occasional, but still rare almond milk. No one really understood how almonds could become milk, or why people would drink such a thing.

Now, we have so many different kinds of nutmilks - almond, cashew, pistachio, walnut - the list goes on and on.

You would think you're being super healthy by hopping on the wellness bandwagon and ditching your antibiotic/hormone - filled dairy milk for a store-bought almond milk, but if you stop and look at those ingredients, you'd be in for a shocking realization. The typical almond milk can be just as bad for you, since a lot of them contain stabilizers (such as xanthan gum and guar gum), preservatives, and even tons of added sugar if you're not getting the unsweetened kind!

In reality, there are only 2 ingredients that should be in any any nut milk - water, and the nut. 

There are brands out there which make nut milks with clean, simple ingredients, but those can get super pricy super fast. Especially if you're like me and using your milk for several recipes throughout the day. 

It's actually very simple and quick to whip up some nut milk at home! Here are 2 recipes and a few variations you can make to have delicious, clean nut milk at home.

Other than the nut milk, you can take the leftover pulp and make it into cookies, energy balls, pizza crust, pancakes - the possibilities are endless and you;re getting more out of your almonds!

DIY Almond Milk:

Servings: 4 cups

Ingredients

- 1 cup almonds, soaked overnight*

- 4 cups filtered water

- Optional, for flavoring: cinnamon, dates, vanilla powder, cacao powder

Directions

- Place almonds and water in a high-speed blender and blend on high for 1-2 minutes.

- Transfer blended milk into a nut-milk bag and strain to get the almond pulp out.

- If you choose to flavor your milk, transfer it back into the blender and add cinnamon and vanilla for a yummy vanilla almond milk, or cacao powder for a healthy chocolate milk! Add 1-2 dates to sweeten if desired. Blend for another minute.

- Transfer almond milk into an air-tight container like a mason jar and enjoy for up to a week!

DIY Cashew Milk:

Servings: 4 cups

Ingredients

- 1 cup cashews, soaked overnight*

- 4 cups filtered water

Directions

- Place cashews and water in a high-speed blender and blend on high for 1-2 minutes.

- If you choose to flavor your milk, add in any flavorings and blend again! No need to strain cashew milk - the nut is creamy enough, especially after soaking, that no pulp is left over.

- Transfer cashew milk into an air-tight container like a mason jar and enjoy for up to a week!

* Soaking is an important part of the process as it makes the nuts blend better with the water. It also helps the milk be easier to digest as it sprouts the nuts.

I personally love making cashew milk because you don't need to strain it. It can literally be done in 5 minutes! You can use the 1:4 ratio for any nut you want to make into milk, so go ahead and experiment with as many combinations as you can think of!