Nut, Seed and Grain Milks and How To Make Them

Nut, Seed and Grain Milks - How To Make Them

Plant-based or what some call vegan milks can be made from nuts or grains and vary in flavor and texture. Common non-dairy beverages are made from rice, soy, oats, hemp seeds, coconut, cashew and almond. Some are sweetened, some are not. Some have added flavors like cacao (chocolate) or vanilla. Some nut milks are organic, some are conventional.

You can also use a Vita-Mix blender or food processor to make nut milks at home. Some people soak their nuts before making nut milk for easier digestion. Try it both ways and see what works out best for you.

For a basic nut or grain milk recipe, we’ll use almonds as the example, but generally speaking, you can replace the almonds with just about any nut or grain in this basic recipe to make whatever nut or grain milk you desire:


 

Almond milk recipe:

• 1 cup almonds to 3 cups water

• For a thicker mix you can try 1 cup almonds to 2 cups water

A vita mix blender (Vita Mix Blender) is ideal for making nut and grain milks thanks to it’s excellent power and speed, however any blender or food processor (Food Processor) will work just fine. However, just as with the blender, using a food processor that is reliable and that has good speed and power is also recommended for a better quality result.

Simply add the above almonds and water to your blender or food processor and thoroughly blend the materials until they are essentially a milk. You’ll notice that with the almonds, as with many other materials, that there is a dark color to the milk. To remove these skins and the excess pulp from the milk, we need to now filter the milk before drinking or using. Simply get a container ready that can receive the milk and perhaps even hold the nut milk straining bag in place, or simply use a mixing bowl or other vessel and hold the bag yourself until everything has been poured from the blender into the bag.

Use a simple nylon mesh nut milk bag (Nylon Mesh Nut Milk Bag) or sprouting bag. Any form of finer mesh filtration will do, even multiple layers of cheesecloth for a finer straining if you do not have a bag available. Coffee filters or the like however are too fine and are not a good idea for straining a nut milk. As you strain the bag, begin to close it from the top and twist the opening of the bag to apply pressure from the top, eventually squeezing the bag dry to get every drop you can from it. Nuts tend to have a fibrous and therefore sponge-like nature and so some pressure should be used to get all of the moisture out of them during straining.

You’re left with a pulp or meal of the nut afterward, in addition to the milk, that can be used in recipes or even dried and ground into a flour for any use that can replace traditional flour. So you also make yourself a gluten free, wheat free flour or meal along with your nut milks as well. So this is highly efficient and great to do, just like most natural processes.

Vita-Mix blender: 
high-powered food processor: 
Nut milk bags: 

You can then add any flavorings or seasonings you like from that point, such as dates, cacao powder, coconut oil or even just more basic sweeteners such as honey or cane sugar. Have fun!

Visit our website & store for more: