Got Milk? Almond Milk that is…
Almond milk is one of my favorite drinks. Rich and creamy, it's easy to make and super nourishing. While almond milk is a good alternative beverage for those on a dairy-free kick or raw food plan, I think it's just plain delicious, whatever your dietary predilection! My children drink it by the glassful, while I drink it in my tea and blend it up in smoothies.
I used my favorite nine-year-old hand model to take the pictures above and while he's been a bit of a wild stallion of late, I have to say he was a model passenger for the almond milk photo shoot. Got milk? Yes, we do! He gulped this cupful down as soon as we were finished photographing.
2 cups almonds
4 cups water
1 vanilla beans
(or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
)
- Soak almonds and vanilla bean overnight
- Discard soaking water and rinse almonds in a deep bowl of water, repeat until water is clear
- Place soaked almonds, vanilla bean and 4 cups of water in a Vita-Mix
(or other high speed blender)
- Blend on highest speed for 90 seconds
- Strain milk through cheesecloth or a fine mesh paint strainer bag, discarding solids
- Serve
Making this almond milk is quick and dirty, you will definitely get your hands wet as you squeeze it through the paint bag. After you're done, you can enjoy this rich gluten-free almond milk in chai with a splash of agave; perfect for fall.
Posted on September 30, 2007 in beverages by Elana
other entries you may like: Vegan Eggnog
or Cashew Milk
or Raspberry Smoothie
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42 comments
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Before you leave a comment...
"Check out Elana's FAQ page for info on substitutions -- there are just too many possibilities so she can't answer all of these : ) But the Forums are an excellent resource and I highly recommend posting your substitution questions there; everyone is friendly and helpful." -Katie
Questions:
Do you throw the vanilla bean in with the almonds when you grind? Or do you re-use the vanilla bean? As vanilla beans seem to run $2.50+ each, do you really use one vanilla bean per 5-6 cups of almond milk?
Thanks!!
I've been recently diagnosed with severe allergies to soy and dairy. This recipe has been a Godsend. Thank you!!
Hi Ruth,
Thanks for stopping by. Yes, I throw the vanilla bean in with the almonds when I blend (see recipe above on line 3. where it states put almonds and vanilla bean in blender. You can get organic vanilla beans here
for around $.20 --yes that's 20 cents a piece.I am so glad that you are enjoying this recipe, being dairy-free myself I have used this one and the cashew milk quite a lot.
Enjoy! Elana
I clicked on the updated link for your vanilla bean source's site. A Norton popup rated it as a dangerous site with over 100 threats. Since all the links in your book have proved to be to reliable companies, there may still be a problem with that specific link.
Joan,
Thank you for the warning. I've gone ahead and changed the link over to a new website.
I am addicted to the milk recipes you have here (almond and cashew). Thank you! Where can I find the vanilla bean? I am having trouble with the link.
Halima,
Thank you for your nice comment! I'm addicted as well...
I just tried the vanilla bean link and it's working fine. What happens when you click on it?
Try it here: http://www.organic-vanilla.com/servlet/Detail?no=78
Elana
I am doing a 21 day, gluten, sugar, caffeine free cleanse starting Sept 2, 2008.
I just want to make sure almond milk is gluten free. please advise best wishes, Joey
Hi Elana - love your site. You offer the world a good resource.
I was wanting to introduce you to a new project we are doing http://www.foodanswersonline.com - In collaboration with the Harrisburg Community College's Culinary School, other schools and professionals like yourself - I want to create a site that offers people only the best in food information. I just tagged your page on Almond Milk on this property.
I would love to have you be a Trustee - where you will be able to contribute useful information on food you specialize on. This should help you as well - because you can build on your Thought Leadership and with your profile page on the site you can link back to your website. The more pages of good information you tag (your own content or for others) the more links back to your property.
Most importantly - is for you to notice the difference in how our search technology works. We leverage http://www.rawsugar.com.
Please let me know if you are interested or have any questions and all the very best in life and living.
Paul D'Souza
Joey -The almond milk featured above does not contain gluten; all the recipes on my blog are gluten free. Good luck with your cleanse.
Hi Elana,
I just discovered and am enjoying your website and all the recipes (especially since I recently started converting my family to SCD).
I have just made almond milk for the first time using this recipe, and I'm impressed! Being of a frugal nature, I am wondering: have you ever tried to do anything with the almond/vanilla pulp that is left over after you've squeezed out the milk? Is it good for, say, baking into almond cookies like you would with almond flour? Or is all the good stuff squeezed out of it?
Thanks,
-- Sigrid
Sigrid,
I know someone mentioned to me that they use the almond pulp leftovers from this recipe for something...I just can't remember what!
Maybe if you post this question on the forums you will get some feedback. Sorry I can't be of more help.
Elana
I just wanted to let you know your link for vanilla is no longer active. The site (when I finally found it) looks like they went of business. It says everything is out of stock. :( Do you have another source for affordable vanilla? I really want to try this recipe. Thanks, Christin
Dear Christin,
Thanks for pointing this out. I've switched the vanilla bean to an active link.
Elana
I need to come up with a non-dairy "instant" milk powder that my son's camping group can take on long hiking/camping trips. Will very finely ground almond flour work as an instant nut milk on camping trips?
Julianne... (or anyone else) did you ever come up with a powdered Almond Milk for the camping trips. I am interested in this too. Please let me know.
You can make almond milk on a trip this way. Put a good size scoop of almond butter in a quart jar, add vanilla and stevia if you want, and add water. Cap the jar and shake it up well. At home I do this in the blender when I am in a pinch for almond milk. You can get powdered coconut milk for trips too.
HTH
KRISTIN,
WHAT RECIPIE DO YOU USE TO MAKE ALMOND MILK WITH ALMOND BUTTER?
Julianne,
Wow, what a great idea, I hadn't thought about that before. I don't know if it will work. Feel free to experiment and let us know how it turns out.
Thanks,
Elana
Hi Elana and everyone else interested...
Wanted to share that I too make my own almond milk in a similar fashion but seeing that I hate to see food go to waste, I have learned to turn the strained almond mush into a delicious power bar afterward. I use the mush and mix in whatever I have on hand (this past batch included goji berries, raisins, dried mango, pecans, unsweetened cocoa powder and agave). I do not have real measurements, instead just eye how much of each ingredient I would like to have (taste tasting along the way!). The mixture then gets packed real tightly in a greased 9x5in baking dish and baked at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes. Let cool and then cut into bars. Sometimes they can be crumbly, which is not a big deal for me, but let me know if you try this and do come up with something. I was thinking mushed banana as a possibility to try on the next batch!
Enjoy
Sara,
Great idea and thanks for sharing it with all of us. If I try it, I'll be sure to let you know how it turns out. I usually save my almond pulp for my raw friend --she does all kinds of fun things with it.
Elana
I just made this milk and it is so good. I don't even use the vanilla bean just some vanilla and a drop of natural almond flavouring. I got the idea from another site to blend with dates to sweeten it and I think that was really good as well.
I am going to try to work the left over pulp into veggie burgers. If I come up with something that works well I will post it. I also wonder if it would be better to start with blanched almonds so you didn't have as much pulp to begin with.
Bev,
Thanks for sharing your experiments (so glad they worked out) and keep us posted on those veggie burgers!
Elana
Do you know how many calories and how much fat is in homemade almond milk? I am wondering if it is the same as the stuff from the store. I assume that all that fat from the nut goes into the milk which is a whooping 40 grams at least. Thanks
CRYSTAL -For the answer to this and other frequently asked questions please see my faq's. Thanks for stopping by.
dear Elana, I am a novice- for making almond milk, would I use almonds with skin or peeled almonds [after soaking]? I do not have a blender, but a Braun fruit and vegetable mixer. Must I buy a blender to do this or could I put the Braun mixer in the bowl of almonds, vanilla bean and water?
It is for my son who has a sensitive stomach and digestion- Apart from gluten-free could almond flour suit a child with sensitive digestion or might it be too rich?
Sincerely,
Alexandra
Hi Alexandra, as you can see from the recipe above, it uses "almonds," though to clarify, the skin comes off in the pulp when it is strained through the paint bag. As you can imagine, I cannot try every permutation of every recipe that every reader comes up with, nor can I reasonably guess over the internet whether or not a substituted ingredient or piece of equipment will work. Sounds like you'll need to experiment to find out. I hope this answer is helpful to you :-)
hi elana,
i went onto the organic vanilla bean website that you posted and i was wondering if you use the tahitian vanilla beans or the bourbon? do you find much of a difference in using them to make almond milk? thanks so much.
michelle
Hi Michelle, looks as though the link above is to Tahitian vanilla beans, though I can't see why something else wouldn't work.
Elana-
I am excited to use this recipe we have been making almond milk for a long time but never flavored. We really just make it as a novelty. My 3 year old son was just diagnosed with autism so i have a feeling he will be more likely to give up milk happily with this recipe.
I do use the nut pulp for crusts to make pie and lemon bars. I just toast it slightly in the oven first to dry it out. it turns out very yummy and a good substitute for graham cracker crust.
Hi Elana,
I read on another food blog to take the discarded solids, crumble them on a baking sheet, and bake at 200 for a few hours until completely dry. Then, pulverize in vitamix until it's almond meal. I haven't tried baking with it, I sprinkle it over baby's cereal and our yogurt, and give it to the dogs over their food too. What do you think? Could this be used in place of almond flour? With a 14 month old, no time to test, but if you do, I'd love to hear about it!
Thanks for all the great GF recipes, good luck with your new book!
Just wanted to let you and everyone else know that I just made this recipe, but since I don't have a VItamix, I used my magic Bullet instead! I first tried it with the regular cups, but also didn't have any cheese cloths or anything like it. So I decided to use the juicer that comes with the Magic Bullet. The mesh sieve it comes with is perfect and the way the juicer is made (the juicer strainer fits into the blender attachement) so it works really well. That said, once there's too much pulp, it doesn't grind the almonds anymore, so being that it's a small appliance, it needs to be done in smaller batches.
It also ground the pulp to such a fine texture that with some drying time in the oven it becomes almond meal! Next time I'll try it in my dehydrator to keep it from actually cooking the almond meal.
EXCELLENT recipe! THe milk itself is delish! And final note, I didn't have a vanilla bean (they are 12$ here!) but used organic pure vanilla extract and it tastes perfect :)
Andrée
[...] Click here for homemade almond milk recipe! Publix and Kroger carry almond milk. [...]
Hi Elana,
So glad to have found your website. I look forward to getting your recipes via emial.
Thanks to everyone too who shared what they did with the leftover almond pulp - that's the google search I did that brought me to this site.
Gina
Can't wait to try this! How long does it last in the fridge? THanks!
MMM interesting recipe. I do 1 cup almonds to 3 cups water, 1/8 tsp sea salt, 2 tsp agave and 1/2 tsp vanilla.
I also used blanched almonds. I'm going to let them sit overnight in water see if that makes a difference.
Elana - I just tried your almond milk recipe and it's great! I added a smidge each of honey and vanilla extract and it's so tasty. I am not gluten free but I stumbled upon your website when I was searching for an almond milk recipe and I'm on here all the time now. My husband was buying cartons of almond milk and I just thought it would be easier and cheaper to make our own. It taste so much better, too, there's no comparison. Thanks for sharing your talent!
I am interested in trying this and the cashew milk recipe, however, I do not own a vita-mix. I know they are pretty powerful, but would a regular blender still do the job? Or would a juicer work? Any insight would be awesome! Thanks
Instant coconut milk using coconut flour? Is this possible?
This is where I order my vanilla beans:
http://www.amadeusvanillabeans.com/
They have a nice selection. The Uganda Gold are very nice.
I wish high profile "educators" like this would be responsible about not promoting ideas which could be dangerous for humans. Paint strainers, recommended by this author for making nut milks, etc., are NOT food grade material. Non-food-grade nylon mesh, which is what most paint strainers are made of, can easily leach harmful chemicals into one's food. You can purchase food-grade nylon mesh (online or at hobby beer and wine-making retail supply shops) that will not cause this risk.
I am also concerned that this author (and a lot of others) are still promoting agave as a sweetener. There is much literature available now that would cause any thinking person to drop their use of agave until the questions are worked through and a new production process is developed. It is likely that agave is NOT a healthy food, and if the disclaimers are even partially correct, it should be taken off the market like HFCS.
Could you share some of your agave links? I've read one anti-agave rant but the author focused on dark agave as opposed to less sweeter amber BUT most importantly is that he discussed replacing sugar with agave on a 1:1 ratio which is absurd! You can use 75% less agave and still have enough sweetness!
There is also discussion about corn syrup being mixed in with some agave products but I'm not sure which brands this occurs in. I have a bad corn syrup allergy and the Madhava agave brand I use gives me no problems whatsoever!
Hi Elana, would like to check if almonds are highly sprayed? Is it better to get organic or is that not really necessary?
Tks
I used a regular blender and it worked fine! I added one cup of water at a time and blended thoroughly each time, and I think that helped get all the little pieces of almonds. The almond milk is DELICIOUS!! I didn't have a cheesecloth so I used a towel with little tiny hole in it...it worked perfectly! Yippee!! Thank you Elana!