Homemade Almond Milk Recipe

While the store-bought nut milks aren't bad, they often contain additives such as carrageenan (often irritates the gut) and soy lecithin (many people are intolerant or sensitive to this additive) and preservatives such as excess sodium. Almond milk is a source of protein, vitamin E, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, calcium, magnesium and zinc.

Homemade almond milk sounds like a time-consuming luxury, but it's surprisingly easy. In fact, you can have creamy, rich nut milk for your granola as early as tomorrow morning if you follow these six easy steps:

Almond Milk Ingredients:
1 cup raw almonds, (preferably organic) unroasted, no salt
5 cups of filtered water
2 tbsp of maple syrup or 1 tsp of pure vanilla extract

You will also need a blender or food processor and a fine strainer or cheesecloth.

Step 1:
Soak 1 cup of almonds in filtered water overnight on your kitchen counter. Cover with enough water to completely submerge all the almonds by at least 3 cm (1 inch).

Step 2:
In the morning, drain all the water and rinse the almonds thoroughly, at least two-three times. Soaking overnight releases the enzyme-inhibiting substance in the brown skin that is to blame for making them hard to digest.

Step 3:
Heat five cups of filtered water almost to a boil.

Step 4:
Place almonds in blender or food processor and blend to a fine texture.

Step 5:
Add three cups of hot water to the almonds and blend for another two to three minutes. Pour the blended mixture of almond milk through a fine strainer or cheesecloth into a bowl.

Step 6:
Return almond fibre (or "grit") to the food processor or blender, add remaining two cups of water and blend again. Strain once again. Add maple syrup or vanilla to add a touch of sweetness and voila - homemade almond milk!

The recipe makes five cups of almond milk that you can keep it in your fridge for three to five days.

This whole process (minus the soaking) will take you under 30 minutes to complete and it's well worth the end product. I'm quite confident you will love the taste so much you will never want to buy almond milk again.

You can use your homemade almond milk in a variety of ways:

- Make a smoothie and combine it with your favourite protein powder and fruit.
- Add it to your morning granola or cereal.
- Drink it instead of cow's milk as a cold healthy snack beverage.

And if you're wondering what to do with the leftover almond grit, here's a little trick that I often do for smooth, soft skin. If you have kids, they will just love this idea for the bath.