Why is there rice starch in my almond milk? If I want rice starch I will eat rice! And just what does ‘natural flavouring’ mean?? Almonds have their own natural flavour and don’t need any additional chemistry to taste great! In my opinion.
I’ve gotten so annoyed at the extra additives so many companies are putting into organic almond milk, I’ve decided to go back to making my own. Here’s my process:
Fresh Almond Milk
I soaked almonds overnight, then double rinsed them and put 2 cups into my food processor fitted with the standard s-blade. I added 2 cups of filtered water to the almonds and processed it all for about 3-4 minutes. Note: If you don’t have a large food processor (at least 12 c bowl), cut the amounts in half so you don’t have floods. (Voice of experience here.)
I then put the mixture through a fine sieve (yes, you can use a nut bag). 
This resulted in somewhere around 1-2 cups of liquid. I added 1 tsp vanilla, a pinch of Himilayan rock salt and about 2 more cups of water, then give it a quick stir, or if you have it in a bottle – a quick shake. I ended up with a wonderful creamy blend that tastes WAY better than any store bought almond milk. I hadn’t done this for a few years and had forgotten how good REAL almond milk tastes.
YUM and HA! to the over processed yuckiness that keeps landing on our grocery store shelves.
Time involved? I didn’t time it precisely but my guesstimate is around 15 minutes, including soaking the almonds right through to pouring the delectable end results into a storage jar. If you absolutely don’t have the time or energy for making your own – please please please take the time to read the small print in the ingredients lists and make the cleanest choice you can. It’s worth it. Your bodymind appreciates this expression of love.
But then… what do you do with the leftover almond mush?
Make Almond Leftover Cookies of course!
When I use 2 cups of soaked almonds to make almond milk, I tend to end up with about 2 cups of soft almond mash. What to do? Bake cookies of course!
- 2 c almond mash
- ¼-½ cup sweetener (maple syrup, honey, coconut sugar – so the coconut sugar would be ½ c, the others less – you can also use dates probably 4 Medjool… soak to mash and mix in with cookie dough)
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ¼ tsp Himilayan rock salt (less if you use sea salt)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/3 c chocolate chunks (I used 75% dark chocolate)
*All ingredients are organic!
Mix everything together, putting the baking powder in last. Use a spoon to drop the dough onto a parchment covered cookie sheet. This makes about 1 dozen cookies. Bake in 350 oven for 15-20 minutes or so, until golden.
They will hold their shape better if you can wait until the cookies have cooled down. I have trouble with that part …
If you enjoyed these recipes check out my gluten free, dairy free cookbooks here