Happy weekend, guys!
One of the most frequently asked questions I get from new clients is, “what about milk?”
This usually demands a multi-part answer. If the client is asking whether or not it’s OK to have some dairy once in a while, I’ll need to listen to her level of transition and get a sense of her goals. I’m no great fan of cow’s milk dairy, but I certainly believe that there can be a place for organic (if not raw and organic) dairy in a transitional diet.
If she’s looking to reduce dairy in her diet, and she’s asking what kind of milk substitute I recommend, the answer is always the same: nut milk. Yes, soymilk is an option, too: I certainly recommend it over cow’s milk dairy. But it’s heavily processed, and most women find that it can lead to bloating and gas - in addition to the fact that many women (myself included) like to take it easy with soy.
And when there are such delicious things as hemp and almond milk in the world, why bother with soymilk?
Nut milk is heavenly. It’s sweet, mild, and gentle on the belly. It’s light enough to serve as a neutral base in smoothies and soups — unlike soy milk, which tends to have a distinctive aftertaste — yet pleasantly sweet. Best of all, it digests seamlessly — unlike conventional dairy, which so many among us (especially those of you who are lactose intolerant) find difficult to stomach.
There are a number of good brands of nut milk on the market. I enjoy Blue Diamond, which is a good value and a nice, sweet taste. Pacific Foods makes a wonderful variety of almond and hemp milks (I like the vanilla flavor). And my current favorite is a brand called That’s Nut Milk, which is as close to homemade as you can find on the markety.
But truth be told, there’s very little reason to spend money on a store bought brand. Nut milk is one of the very easiest raw food products to make at home! Sure, if you don’t have the energy or time, a store bought brand is fine. But I think you’ll find that investing just a little effort in homemade nut milk pays off in a big way. You can adjust flavors, sweetness, and best of all, you can feel a sense of pride in having created your nut milk from scratch. And if you purchase nuts from the bulk bin at your local health food store, you’ll also be able to save money.
Here’s what it takes to make nut milk:
Almonds
Water
Sweetener/flavorings if desired
A blender (regular or high speed)
Yes. That’s it. And there’s barely any recipe to remember — only a ratio. It takes one cup of nuts to four parts water to make a batch of nutmilk. To this, you add the seasonings you like: for plain nutmilk, add a dash of salt, no more. For vanilla almond milk (my usual) add a few dates and a teaspoon of vanilla. And so on.
Tonight, I was in the mood for some vanilla almond milk. So I followed my favorite recipe:
Vanilla Almond Milk (yields 2-3 cups or so)
1 cup almonds
4 cups water
6 dates or 1/4 cup agave
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (or the contents of a vanilla bean)
Procedure:
Begin by soaking your nuts in some water, if you can. Eight hours is ideal, but an hour is fine if that’s what you’ve got!
Next, blend all ingredients on high in a regular blender or a VitaMix:
Let it go for a minute or so.
At this point, you can serve the nut milk exactly as is — you’ll simply have to give it a good shake before pouring!
If you prefer a smooth texture, though, you’ll want to give it a strain. To do this, you’ll need a large container, and some cheesecloth. Or if you plan to make nut milk on a regular basis, go ahead and invest in a nut milk bag!
They’re cheap, conveniant, and can be used again and again (unlike cheesecloth) to strain nut milks and soups. You can purchase them from One Lucky Duck and other raw stores on the web.
To use, simply place the the nut milk bag or cheesecloth over the mouth of your container, leaving a generous overhang and allowing the strainer to droop about halfway down into the container. I used a large mason jar as my container:
To fasten the bag/cheesecloth in place, use a rubberband around the mouth of the container:
Next, pour all the almond milk into the container, so that it drips through the cheesecloth and into the container below:
Take off, do some errands, read a good book, watch a movie, or whatever. Within forty-five minutes (or, ideally, an hour or two), all of the liquid will have been strained, and you’ll be left with almond pulp, like so:
You can use this for raw cookies, for nut pates, or simply as a nut-butter-like treat.
Meanwhile, you’ll have three or so cups of fresh, delicious almond milk, ready to enjoy in smoothies, in soups, or plain! It should last about 2-3 days in the fridge. I’ve seen it last longer — if it tastes at all sour to you, you’ll know its time has come.
Tonight, I opted for a classic treatment:
Cause sometimes we all just need some cookies and (nut)milk.
Let’s see that again:
If you’re wondering, those are the amazing raweos! Introduced to me by Melissa, these are now among my very favorite raw treats 
There are tons of ways to enjoy nutmilk. You can make it with cashews (for a super neutral taste), with hemp seeds (protein rich and distinctive), macadamias, or pecans. And you can adjust seasonings to taste. My favorite varities?
Chocolate nut milk: To the recipe for vanilla almond milk, add 2 tbsp raw cacao nibs or unsweetened cocoa powder
Cinnamon milk: To the recipe for vanilla almond milk, add 1 tsp cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg
Chai milk: To the recipe for vanilla almond milk, add 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon garam masala, and 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
Sugar-free vanilla milk: In place of the dates, add stevia to taste
So…what are you guys waiting for?! Stop dropping pennies on store bought nut milks, and get blending!! Once you experience the joy of homemade almond (and other nut) milks, you’ll never want to go back. Give the procedure a shot, and let me know how it goes!
Happy weekend to you all.
xo
[...] Raw 101: Homemade Almond Milk [...]
Thank you soooo much for posting this; I have been wondering how to make almond milk. I always buy it and assumed I could make it, I just didn’t know how. Once again, another wonderful recipe from you! Thank you!
You are a mind reader; I’ve been thinking about homemade almond milk. Cookies and milk, I haven’t had that in ages! Is there anything wrong with rice milk?
yum. I haven’t heard of That’s Nuts milk. I will have to look out for it. I typically go for pacific. yum yum raweos. This is a great easy recipe, a great way to save some dough.
That’s it…You have inspired me to make almond milk. Mmmm. I want to try macadamia too. Great idea!
I’m drooling over your Vita Mix. I like the looks of those Raweos too, but I lust for the VM. I tried really hard to break my blender today. I’ve got a presentation all ready to give Chris to convince him to buy the big guy.
Hope the rest of your weekend is fab!
Hey sweetie. Sorry to make you drool! But a regular blender can make this just fine!
Ooh thanks for the tutorial! I’m def more of a lazy, purchase Blue Diamond almond milk type of woman.
I’m glad you like the raweos. I thought they were el nasto!
Oooo great tutorial Gena, do you think I can make this in a standard blender?
Also, how long do you think this will last in the fridge? Also, do you think the nutritional content is similar to that of (unsweetend) almond milk on the supermarket shelves? thanks!
Hi Cecilia!
A regular blender will be totally fine. I do not support looking at nutritional labels (aside from ingredients), but I do think that the breakdown is similar here, yes.
Gena
Beautiful job, well done and thank you for the idea of chocolate and chai milk. I just had some delicious homemade almond milk today. Yummy. Blessings of health and peace.
you are amazing…. but i am lazy and think i’ll stick to the unsweetened vanilla almond breeze.
Thanks for the photo tutorial Gena, even though I already do make my own almond milk in my Vita-Mix….sometimes. Sometimes I just get the LowFat Vanilla Pacific Brand from TJ’s and call it a day. But it’s always nice to see others’ renditions of homemade nut milk. Cashew milk is great, too, and I know Sarma raves about Mac Nut milk in her books…may have to try that, too. Life is soooo much better for me since I went dairy free about 3 years ago. Thanks for the post!
I can’t wait to try making my own nut milk. I agree with you that almond is the best milk ever.
looks so good, i have been thinking about this for a few days after reading the recipe in a raw cookbook in Barnes and nobles
great idea so many options,and different nuts u could use..thanks for sharing.
xo
maya
I really appreciate this post because almond milk is really expensive here and I had no idea it was this easy to make myself! Question, when soaking it, is that just an arbitrary amount of water, or is that the pre-measured 4 cups? I assume it is just a small amount, and then after soaking, you drain the almonds and combine in the blender with the 4c? Hope that makes sense.
That’s right, Lara. Soak in enough water to cover, rinse, and make the milk with fresh water!
I should say, “when soaking the almonds…”
This is a great post, I love almond milk, and now I know how to make it! Super excited to make some chocolate milk!
great step by step gena! i really want to try “that’s nuts”-sounds delicious! i usually make my own though, i’ve tried a couple different ways…maybe i should get a nut bag but i’ve found a small strainer works just as well!
maybe you can post this link:
http://cottchz.wordpress.com/2009/06/26/moooover-over-…ew-nut-in-town/
it compares almond milk to other milks with some facts.
i’ve never tried it with 6 figs i’ve always only put 2 in..hmm…though i have to say, Amaretto Agave….YUMMERS!!!!!!
oh, one question, can u soak almonds too long and make them go bad which would make your milk go bad more quickly? i live in a hot humid environment, the south, and sometimes i’ve noticed that if i get lazy and forget i’ve soaked my almonds leaving them for say 24hrs and then make it the next day, my milk goes bad faster…….
Hi Faith –
I’m not going to post a link with nutritional facts because I don’t encourage/support looking at nutritional information that isn’t simply the ingredients of a food — and in this case, you know the ingredients! But thanks!
If it’s very, very hot, leave them out for four hours to soak or soak in the fridge, and simply make it right away.
Gena
GREAT!! We’ve never actually talked about the brands you recommend - I used to use Pacific Foods vanilla almond milk a lot, but wasn’t so sure about it (I think it had lecithin in it, which is why I stopped using it). And “That’s Nut’s Milk” is definitely NOT available here - bummer!!
Oh yes, Melissa has told me allll about raweos
Holy yum.
Hey Gena!
I have a quick question about almond milk and nut milks in general. I’ve always been hesitant to make my own because I rely on my milk alternatives as a significant source of calcium in my diet. Do you have any idea what the nutritional breakdown is on homemade almond milk? Does much of the calcium from the almonds actually end up in the milk (especially if you strain it)?
Thanks, I love the blog!
Hi Sara,
I don’t know the answer to that — as I say in the reply above you, I don’t support looking at nutritional labels/info aside from ingredients for a variety of reasons. I also believe that the real key to bone density is to keep an alkaline system (by not putting acidic, high proteins foods in the body), as well as getting adequate leafy greens. In fairness, though, I’m pretty sure that almond milk is not a high calcium source.
Gena
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! I’ve been meaning to make my own almond milk for the longest time. I’m totally going to buy some almonds now.
I keep seeing those raweos at WF and almost buy them every time. i might just cave and get them.
First, I must admit that your posts are always detailed, informative and well-written. You are just a bundle of information! Thank you for taking the time into making each post relative and useful- this makes your blog a pleasure to read.
On the subject, I buy and use a lot of nut milk- my favorite being Blue Diamond Unsweetened vanilla almond milk. This post as inspired me to take it to the next level and try making my own (not sure when, but sometime!). I have actually made homemade brown rice milk before and enjoyed it very much, but I think I will like the flavor of nut milk better. One of these days when I’m feeling ambitious I’m going to give it a shot. I’ll be sure to let you know how it goes.
Also, do you store your homemade almond milk in the fridge and how long will it keep?
I love almond milk, and homemade has this fresh, creamy quality that the packaged stuff can’t even get near. I just made some brown rice almond milk with cinnamon, it was REALLY good!
http://dragonflypie.wordpress.com/2009/08/21/brown-rice-and-almond-horchata/
Hi Gena,
I would love to try this recipe but I have a few questions first. I once tried to make homemade almond butter but it did not work. Someone told me that it could have been because the almonds were not raw (they were pasteurized). Does this recipe need to be completed with unpasteurized almonds? I can’t find these anywhere! Please let me know. Thanks!
yummm i love homemade almond milk! last time i made it, i didn’t strain it and just ate it all chunky- it was like a milkshake
i’m totally going to invest in a nut milk bag, though
i’ve had those raweos before and they are GLORIOUS!
have a wonderful sunday <3
Those Raweos look yummy! I can’t have nuts so I make raw coconut milk. Coconuts are fairly cheap so I think it saves money to make my own, plus it isn’t processed:)
I think I’ve already told you about my lifelong addiction to soy milk, having been weened on soy formula as a babe, and the lifelong chronic health conditions that accompanied said addiction. Well, since giving up the daily soy milk, I discovered homemade almond milk. Don’t have it everyday, or even every week for that matter, but like you said, sometimes a gal needs her nut milk and cookies.
I’m laughing out loud though…the rubber band idea…ingenious! Never even crossed my mind. Doh! See, this is why you’re a living foods health coach and I’m not.
I was recently devastated to learn that I have a low intolerance to almonds. Almonds! My beloved nut. (I’m also equally intolerant to soy, rice, walnuts, oats, and cow’s milk - so my milk choices are slim, as I loath hemp milk and feel iffy on brazil nut milk and cashew milk.)
This is probably a question I can ask my doctor, but do you think my homemade almond milk is easier on my stomach then say, hey, a handful of almonds. I’m “allowed” to eat my low intolerance foods (I’m intolerant to about every food on the planet - the highest being chocolate! *sobs* - so I can’t give up everything), but now I’m somewhat fearful… I guess I’m just curious on your thoughts on the subject. I’m pining for some freshly blended almond milk right now.
… That a chunk of dark 90% chocolate!
this is awesome! ‘ll definitely be trying it out soon!
so generous of you to share, gena! i go through so many boxes of almond milk i’ve recently started to feel badly about all the trash i’m generating.
i’m so excited to learn how to make my own!
i finally stopped putting in cow’s milk with my cereal and I noticed a big difficult in my energy level. I’m no longer lethargic after breakfast. To include some protein in my meal, I munch on some almonds since I’m too lazy to make almond milk. I’m surprised the commercial ones (like Almond Breeze) put quite a few add ins as I read the ingredient list.
ive seen that’s nut milk at GN’s whole foods…havent tried it yet though.
btw, after checking out your appliances page, i think im just going to send out that link for my (err…our) wedding registry
in the meantime, should i get a cheapo food processor to tide me over? im DYING with all these recipes that require it.
There is nothing like fresh made almond milk!
Mmm! I love raweos too!
Yum! I love all the variations you provide. Is it weird that I think the almond pulp sounds tasty?
Nope. It’s super tasty
[...] blogs, and really a lot of their food sounds awful good. This gal posted detailed directions on making your own almond milk, and I swear, I am going to try [...]
hey, i just wanted to confirm what you said in your previous post regarding soy- it is definitely mucus producing. i decided to do a little test. i have colon hydrotherapy about once a month, so three times i had no soy and things went normally. Each consecutive time i had one serving of soy soy, just once, within the week of my colon hydrotherapy appointment, mucus showed up. I did that twice. the proof is in the pudding..or poop. hah. hurrah for nut milk!
please ignore the variety of typos in there, ha i’m tired. oops.
[...] And there are some free recipes listed on their website as well. As an aside, if you’ve read Gena’s latest blog post about homemade nut milk you might be interested to know that they sell nut bags on their site as [...]
As much as I want to make almond milk, I am lazy so let’s not count on it. But I do want to find That’s Nut Milk! I have never seen it — it’s at healthfood stores? That would solve my problem because I have some issues with ingredients in Blue Diamond, which I used to use but now won’t…. Thanks for this!
Hey D! You can find it at Gary Null’s Uptown Whole Foods on 90th and Bway. And while you’re there, you may or may not run into me or Elise
xo
[...] was feeling industrious, so I made some of Gena’s homemade raw almond milk. I’d left the almonds soaking overnight, so this was easy-peasy and took almost no thought [...]
This is genius!! I love it Gena
Hi Gena,
lol.
thank you so much for your detailed description of how to make milk! Last night, after reading it I have finally made hemp milk, and it tastes so good! I hope my kids (1 and 2 years) will also like it, I have read it has many health benefits. The only problem is that I don’t know what to do with the pulp. I used unshelled hemp seeds, and it does not taste like a treat at all
Thanks again, I find your blog very informative and I read it every day.
that looks so easy! I’m going to have to try this once I finish my “box” of almond milk in the fridge
Thanks Gena!
wow! that was a great post! i can’t wait to try this
WOW great post gena! i wish it lasted longer raw
-muffy
how simple!!!
we made your pumpkin pie soup - delish!
http://actorsdiet.blogspot.com/2009/08/christy-raw-soups.html
I love making my own almond milk! Well, actually I don’t love making it (since I’m lacking in the nut bag department…hehe, that sounds funny…sorry, I’m like, 12). I strain my pulp through a thin wash cloth, and it’s a pain in the arse. But the reward is worth it. I love the vanilla kind, but I’m also loving the different flavors in the Ani book…the Made in Mexico Mylk (carob and cinnamon) is the best!
I love almond milk. Here is my video demo: http://meghantelpnerblog.com/2008/10/14/my-milkshake-brings-all-the-boys-to-the-yard/
Hi Gena!! i absolutly LOVE almond milk and have made it multiple times until a few months ago when i read that blending almonds and water produces CYANIDE!! a deadly poison! have you heard of this?? please inform me of what you know on this topic as it has spooked me away from almond milk!
<3 Dara
Do not worry about making poison mixing almonds and water. This only applies to Bitter Almonds. Not the kind found in grocery stores. If the package does NOT say bitter almonds, they aren’t.
Perfect timing, as usual. I bought a nut milk bag a while ago and just used the last of my boxed almond milk. The time has come! I have visions of almond milk smoothies with juicer pulp dancing in my head. I am determined not to waste pulp! (Says the girl who chucked 2 juices’ worth of pulp just this morning…nobody’s perfect.)
Plus my food processor arrived this weekend so I would say I am officially hooked UP in the appliance department. Time to get freakay in the kitch.
Thank you for this excellent tutorial and recipe. Really, it’s the best I’ve seen.
Hi Gena, thanks for the recipe and tutorial! I was just wondering when you used to buy almond milk did you get the sweetened or unsweetened version? I have a hard time drinking the unsweetened but I love vanilla sweetened but I’m not sure I am doing anything better for myself by drinking sugar.
i can’t wait to try this once I have a real blender
Wow, this was really good! I was really hesitant at first, but once I tried it this morning out of the fridge and it was delicious!
What a great way to save some mula! Thanks for the post!
Thank you for posting this, I made vanilla almond milk and it was delicious! The leftover almonds were amazing in my oatmeal this morning. I put the milk in a smoothie too and it was subtle and awesome!
[...] I did when I got up was to turn the blender on to make my almond milk. I followed the recipe here in case you want to try this yourself.. The old osterizer did a great job of pulverizing the [...]
Great tutorial! Thanks, Gena!
Thanks a lot for the recipe! I’m going to try it soon! You look stunning esp. in the pic with Jenna, what a glow of your skin..definitely the benefits of eating so healthy
[...] with rainbow chard, homemade raw almond milk (more on that wonderful substance later, and thank you Gena for the recipe!), my favorite vegan protein powder, the Rainbow Energizer, some frozen papaya (for [...]
Great post, Love! Nut and seed milks are definitely awesome and the way to go. My personal favorite (because of the nutrition) is Raw hemp seed milk. But, I also love Raw almond milk, too!
Cheers,
Kristen
[...] I made plain almond milk. I don’t give it a pass yet. It might be that I used too little almonds for too much liquid, [...]
Hi,
Great article.
Note of caution re: Almond Milk: There is a lot of evidence (going back to 1972) that carageenan, a thickener made from seaweed, can cause cancer and ulcerations. I know Blue Diamond’s ‘Almond Breeze’ contains carageenans. Haven’t looked into the other brands that you mentioned but will. Love the make it yourself instructions. Thanks.
[...] however, was all over the place, but the morning started perfectly with a freshly made batch of Gena’s raw almond milk. Second time in one week! I’m definitely addicted. We don’t have anything that [...]
whats the nutritional content in almond milk if 1 cup raw almonds plain has 55 gm fat?
Is there anyway to figure out the nutritional breakdown of this? I would like to try and make this and have Type 1 diabetes so need to know the info…..thanks
So, I just made this and had great success. I am, however, poor, so I used a pair of clean pantyhose instead of cheesecloth and it worked like a charm!
[...] crazy looking white goodness is some almond milk I made this week. I used Gena’s recipe from choosing raw. AH-MAZING! I like it much more than the stuff I buy at the store. I included the shredded wheat [...]
[...] remember when I made almond milk? I mentioned then that nut milks (he he) and seed milks lend themselves to endless variety. [...]
[...] and easy-to-digest alternatives with your morning meal. If you’re feeling super creative, give my recipe for almond milk a try. It’s [...]
Thank you for the info! I am new to raw foods and was wondering if the Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Milk was actually considered a raw food/drink. Thanks so much!!
Thanks for the recipe! but i don’t understand how it is cheaper to make your almond milk, at the grocery/health food store almonds are almost always upwards of $7 a pound, if it takes i pound to make 3 cups it only costs $2.75 for a half gallon of blue diamond or Silk almond milk. do you guys know a cheaper source?
I will definitely be trying this! I have a toddler who can’t drink milk, normally I give him rice dream. But am looking for a less expensive option ($8/gallon here). If I made this for him should I fortify it with calcium? If so how much should I add?