Disclaimer: if I can make this milk, ANYONE can make this milk.

There are two things that make food and drinks sort of work for me: taste and consistency. They are equally important and, in my humble opinion, only work well in tandem. Melted ice-cream is usually no good. Neither is, say, perfectly moist yet boringly unsalted rice.

My favorite thing about homemade almond milk is its consistency. Its rich, its thick, its creamy and I almost wanted to give some to my fourth-month old today (I didn’t.) I can sincerely say that it’s super easy to make and, once you get a handle of the cheese cloth element, the clean up is just as smooth.

Recipe:

• Soak 1 cup of almonds for 12 hours (I went longer but only because I forgot about them. Oopsy.)
• Rinse the almonds several times with fresh water.
• Blend the almonds with 2-3 cups of new water, depending on how creamy you want it. At this point you can also add dates, cinnamon, vanilla, honey, a pinch of salt, etcetera, etcetera. Be creative.
• Strain the fiber with a nut bag, mesh strainer or cheese cloth (my latest discovery.)
• Store in fridge and ENJOY.

According to the amazing read The Nourishing Traditions Book of Baby & Child Care, people tend to turn to beverages (often called “milk”) based on soy, almonds, rice and even hemp, to avoid milk allergies. However, these drinks are highly processed, contain refined sweeteners, industrial oils, inappropriate additives such as carrageenan and many synthetic forms of vitamins. To top it all, they are very low in nutritive factors.

The almond milk that I usually buy (and up until now drank like a camel) is from Whole Foods’ brand 365. I went through its ingredients before writing this post and it contains things that I can’t even pronounce: tricalcium phosphate, potassium citrate, locust bean gum, glean gum, lecithin, ergocalciferol, dl-alpha tocopherol acetate…

Try saying that out loud.

Almonds are a bit expensive but this drink is totally worth it. It should last up to 3-5 days in the fridge and please note that its consistency changes a bit. You can also save the leftover flour to make cookies or toast it to bread chicken (which I read online since I’ve never ever made chicken in my life.)

Have fun!

T