Photo by HealthAliciousNess
Sick of regular dairy products, have lactose intolerance or just fancy a change?
Almond milk made from organic raw almonds makes a delicious and healthy milk alternative.
The recipe below is great for cereals, tea and coffee, baking and anything you’d use milk for.
I love adding it to Earl Grey tea, using it as a base for my favourite banana and kale smoothie, and adding it to porridge with cinnamon and maple syrup to make it really creamy!
Why home-made almond milk?
Knowledge that antibiotics and hormones are contained in store bought dairy milk as well as lactose and milk casein intolerance lead many people to seek milk alternatives.
Jamie Oliver’s revelation that store bought milk can contain huge amounts of sugar is increasing the awareness that every day milk might not be so good for you. (You can watch this brilliant video at the end of this post.)
Store bought soy, rice and oat milks might not be much more of a healthy alternative, however you can easily make almond milk at home.
What are the benefits?
Organic raw almonds are low in fat and extremely high in calcium, making almond milk a perfect milk alternative for those who wish to cut dairy out of their diet.
It makes a perfect milk for a super healthybreakfast.
Organic raw almonds are also an excellent source of protein. Protein is important for healthy functioning of your liver and your adrenal glands so your body will function better if you have plenty of it.
Having it in the morning will super charge your body for the rest of the day!
Recipe for almond milk
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of organic raw almonds – soaked overnight
- 4 raw organic dates – soaked for at least 2 hours & seeds removed
- 3 cups of water
- 1 tsp raw organic ground cinnamon
- 1 inch piece of organic vanilla pod, sliced in half, the insides scooped and the pod itself chopped (for easier blending)
Method:
- Place all ingredients in a blender.
- Start at a low speed and increase to high until you can see the nuts and dates are in tiny pieces. If you have a Vitamix blender this should take a minute or so.
- Strain the mixture through a cheesecloth or nut mylk bag.
Et voila!
The dreamiest, creamiest, most delicious and healthy almond milk.
It should keep for 5 days in an airtight container in the fridge.
Soaking the organic raw almonds is an important part of releasing the nutrients and activating their enzymes to make them more bio-available to your body.
Dates are a wonderful and nourishing sweetener for the milk, as are the vanilla and cinnamon.
You also benefit from the amazing nutritional qualities of these “sweeteners”:
- Cinnamon relieves stomach upsets, cold and flu symptoms and is said to reduce cholesterol as efficiently as statins.
- Vanilla is an antioxidant which prevents damage to brain cells.
So what are you waiting for?!
Buy some almonds on your way home and dust of the cobwebs from that blender of yours!
(If you liked this, you might also like Healthy Breakfast Smoothie Recipes.)
Sources:
- Grant, Suzi, Alternative Ageing, 2006, Penguin Books, London
- Jamie Oliver’s TED Prize wish: Teach every child about food www.ted.com – accessed 27 Aug 2010
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