Nutritious Nut Milk - A Great Dairy Alternative!
With so many health benefits, it’s no wonder many people turn to nuts as an alternative for milk. Whether you have a dairy intolerance, a vegan diet or just want to try something new, there are plenty of varieties to choose from. Almonds, hazelnuts, pistachios and pecans; they all make the base for nutritious nut milks that give you total control in sweetness, thickness and exactly what’s going in it!
Nut milks are super simple to make at home and are a great substitute for dairy-based dessert recipes too. To show you how simple nut milks are to make, we have 3 recipes for you to try from Ceres Organics:
HOME MADE ALMOND MILK
Ready in 10 minutes plus soaking time | Serves 2
Nothing compares to homemade almond milk. It’s sweet, thick and creamy…the complete opposite of the watery UHT almond milks you find on supermarket shelves that are often only consist of about 2.5% almonds (or less)! By making your own, you also get to avoid the potentially harmful chemical additives that are found in commercialised almond milks, such as refined sugar, mineral salts, soy lecithin, sunflower oil, ‘natural’ flavours and vegetable gums.
In this recipe, we soak the almonds overnight to remove phytic acids from the nuts that disrupt digestion and prevent the absorption of nutrients. Almonds are a ‘true beauty’ food as they are rich in vitamin E, a fat-soluble vitamin that acts as an antioxidant, protecting your body from free radical damage that has a role in both ageing and disease.
After straining your almond milk, to avoid wasting the protein and fibre from the pulp, keep it and add a half cup to your overnight oats!
Ingredients
1 cup Organic RAW Whole Almonds (soaked overnight)
2 cups filtered water
Organic Brown Rice Malt Syrup (to taste)
Organic Vanilla Extract (to taste)
Method
Soak the almonds overnight. Drain and rinse well.
Throw almonds in a blender with the filtered water and process at high speed until pulverised.
Strain almond milk through a very fine sieve or nut milk bag.
Sweeten with rice malt syrup, or other sweetener of your choice, and flavour with vanilla extract. If using dates to sweeten, put the milk back in the blender and blend on high until dates are blended thoroughly.
*Almond milk can be kept in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. Shake well before serving.
RAW CASHEW MILK
Ready in 10 minutes | Serves 6
This raw cashew milk is absolutely dreamy. The best thing about making cashew milk is that it takes just 10 minutes! You just soak the cashews overnight, then add the cashews, water and your preferred sweetener into the blender and blend!
Here we use the general ratio of 1:3. One parts cashew to 3 parts filtered water. However, this is quite thick and if you are wanting to soak your oats in it or have it on muesli, 4 cups of water might be better. It is a matter of personal preference. Same goes for sweeteners. Here we use deglet noor dates. You could, however, use coconut nectar, agave or coconut sugar. It is up to you.
Ingredients
1 cup Organic Cashews, RAW Whole
3 cups filtered water
Method
Soak cashews overnight, drain and rinse.
Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until you get an ultra creamy milk.
COCONUT MILK
Ready in 15 minutes | Serves 6
Non-dairy milks have become popular today. But just because these milks are made from plants, don’t assume that they are all healthy. Many highly processed plant based milks contain added sugar, canola and sunflower oil as fillers, and chemical additives. So always read the labels. To avoid these additives and anti-nutrients, and save yourself some money too, we highly recommend you make your own non-dairy milk … and coconut milk is one of the easiest to do!
You only need two ingredients to make your own coconut milk: coconut chips and water. If you are wanting to drink it straight up or to make iced mochas or pour over your muesli, add a little sweetener of your choice and a dash of vanilla. If you plan on using the coconut milk for cooking, just add a pinch of salt to the coconut chips and water to bring out the natural flavours.
If you are able to source organic or spray free coconuts, you can also use fresh coconut meat in place of the chips for an even creamier milk. You’ll probably want to hide this from your flat mates in the back of the fridge!
Ingredients
1 cup Organic Coconut Chips
3 cups filtered water
1 tablespoon Organic Coconut Nectar Syrup
1 teaspoon Organic Vanilla Extract
Method
Process all ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth and creamy.
Strain milk through an ultra-fine sieve or nut milk bag.
These recipes have been kindly developed for us by Ceres Organics.