Homemade Almond Milk is Good

Ciao Ragazzi!

Today was a first for me. A first in making almond nut milk. I have bought almond nut milk in the stores several times but I have always wanted to make my own. This process was a lot easier than I thought it would be and the result was fantastic.

Almond milk making supplies and ingredients:

• Blender
• Cheesecloth or nut milk bag
• Almonds
• Dates or agave nectar to sweeten

I bought this package of cheesecloth at the grocery store. It was a little over $2 for 2 yards.

I plan to buy a nut milk bag in the future. I know that I will make more nut milks and throwing away cheesecloth every time seems silly. The cheapest bag I found on Amazon is about $10 – there was also one for $12 on Amazon. I am going to check my local grocery co-op this week to see if I can get one there.

The process of making almond milk is really simple. I thought it was going to be complicated but it is actually very easy. The biggest pain with this process is the time it takes. The almonds need to soak for a couple of hours and then the blended almonds and water need a while to drain. This is a good weekend process to do on a day when you are not rushed for time.

Step 1: Soak almonds (I soaked for about 6 hours).

Step 2: Add almonds to blender.

Step 3: Add water. For 1 cup of almonds use 4 cups of water (1:4 ratio).

Step 4: Add 6 dates or teaspoon of agave syrup.

Step 5: Blend. Blend. Blend.

Step 6: Drape cheese cloth or nut bag over a large jar or pitcher and pour blended almonds and water.

Step 7: Wait. Let all of the milk drain from the almond/water mixture. Takes at least 1 hour. The more time you let it drain, the better.

Step 8: Save the dry almond paste for almond bars and butters (more on that later this week).

I also added a teaspoon vanilla extract before mixing in the blender. You could also add a tablespoon of cacao powder for chocolate milk.