Home-made Milk-made

These days, it’s nearly impossible to find a coffee shop that doesn’t serve the ubiquitous almond milk. We’ve all read the nightmarish stories of the dreaded soy milk (GMO-laden soybeans! Highly processed! Thyroid-impeding!) And while almond milk is surely the cleaner route to go for both you and your baby—even the latest brands have pumped up the once innocent beverage with thickening agents like carrageenan and xanthan gum, on which the jury is still out (holistic purists claim that both are inflammatory). What’s a health conscious mother to do? Play it safe and make your own. Before you go running to your nearest Whole Foods, it’s not as scary as it seems. Below we’ve broken down the simple steps to homemade nut milk. Enjoy!

Basic Almond Milk Recipe

1 cup of raw almonds

4 cups of water

Sweetener of choice (We like 5-10 drops of liquid stevia or 1-2 teaspoons maple syrup)

1 cheesecloth or nut milk bag

Optional: ½ teaspoon vanilla extract / ½ teaspoon cinnamon / pinch of sea salt

Soak 1 cup of almonds in a bowl of water over night. (Soaking allows nuts to soften, sprout and become more vegetable-like, which is easier on the digestive system.)

The next day, strain and rinse almonds. Add nuts to your Vitamix or high-powered blender with 4 cups of water. Blend for 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Place nut milk bag or cheesecloth in a medium sized bowl. Squeeze bag, releasing the liquid “milk” into the bowl. One the almond meal inside the bag is dry, pour liquid back into blender and add sweetener of choice plus vanilla, sea salt and cinnamon if you’re using them. Blend for 30 seconds.

Store in refrigerator for up to 3 days.