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The whole make-versus-buy dilemma has finally caught up with me and almond milk. I love the simplicity of a fairly inexpensive box of non-dairy milk, but I dislike (quite strongly) the laundry list of additives with all of your non-dairy choices.
So today I embark on the almond milk experiment. Overall, I would say it was successful. It was easy and quick to make. It did require some preparation, in that I had to get the almonds soaking the day before.
Besides that, TOO EASY. It was also very well received by both the full-size and miniature people in my house.
You'll notice I used a super fancy Vitamix for the operation. While entirely luxurious, probably not necessary. I think a regular blender would have gotten the job done nicely.
Perhaps tack on a few extra minutes to your blend time if you using a more ordinary blender. But then again, I'm using a model that is at least as old as I am, if not older.
If you ever come across one of these in a thrift store, BUY IT! Every bit as powerful as the current model.
My brother was fortunate enough to have inherited his, but is nice enough to let me borrow it from time to time. In hindsight, I probably should have made him some almond milk... oh well. I’m a bad sister.
Another thing you might want to pick up is a nut milk bag. I was dreading asking the grocery clerk where I might find a ‘nut milk bag.’ It’s just a silly thing to say, but they're very inexpensive and you can find them at any health food store. You could try to use cheese cloth, but it's kinda a mess. It's worth getting the bag.
In my version I used a little hemp seed, but it’s totally optional. I just happened to have some around and am presently obsessed with adding a superfood to everything. I used dates as a nice natural sweetener, but you could substitute agave or probably even maple syrup.
This recipe leaves you with a fair bit of leftover almond meal. You can use the leftover almond meal for loads of things: sprinkle it on your oatmeal, drop it in a smoothie or better yet bake some Almond Quinoa Muffins.
Homemade Almond Hemp Milk
- Prep Time: 12 hours to soak
- Total Time: 0 hours
- Yield: 4 cups 1x
- Category: beverage
- Method: blender
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Make almond milk at home with just a few simple, healthy ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw almonds
- ½ cup hemp seeds
- 3 ½ cups filtered water
- 2 Medjool dates
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Instructions
- Soak almonds and hemp seeds in water overnight, or at least a few hours. Make sure the water covers the nuts and seeds by about an inch. They'll absorb a lot of that water. If your dates are dried out, you can drop them in the water for an hour or so too.
- Drain and rinse the almonds.
- Combine almonds, hemp seeds, 3 ½ cups filtered water, dates and vanilla in the blender.
- Blend on high for a few minutes or until the almonds are broken up into a fine meal. Stop ever so often to scrape down the sides.
- Hold your nut milk bag over a large bowl (I used a large glass measuring bowl). Pour the mixture from the blender into the bag over the bowl. Let the liquid drain through, then squeeze the pulp in the bag to get the remaining liquid out.
- Pour the almond-hemp milk into clean pitcher or other container and refrigerate for up to 3-5 days. It tends to seperate when left, so be sure to give it a shake before drinking.
Bhavi
I was happy to see this no sugar added homemade vegan milk. I would like to try this for my 2.5 year old. He drinks almond+hemp milk store bought. Can you help me with few questions:
1) Do I need to remove outer skin of the Almonds and Dates ?
2) Does the nutritional value remain the same as the actual hemp hearts, Almonds, Dates ?
3) Any recommendation for the container to be used to store in the refrigerator ? Should it be glass container ?
Thank you
Katie Koteen
Hi Bhavi!
1) No need to remove the skins
2) Nutritional information does not remain the same, as you will be straining out a lot of the solids
3) I like to use large mason jars, but anything you have should be fine.
Good luck!
John
This is a good discovery. I had no idea that you could make your own almond milk. My son drinks almond milk like his daddy is Bill Gates. From now on he'll have to find his own almonds and milk them.