Nut milk is a fantastic alternative to cow’s milk for any number of reasons. Whether you’re vegan, lactose intolerant or you’ve simply don’t like the taste of dairy milk, all kinds of nuts and seeds make a tasty, creamy beverage for cooking, drinking and eating with cereal in the morning. You will miss out on some nutrients from cow’s milk but there are plenty of benefits that make up for it. Nut milk is still a good source of calcium — with healthier fats, a wider variety of vitamins, fewer calories to boot. Even better, making nut milk at home is super easy and you’re guaranteed a fresh, preservative-free refresher.
The basic nut milk recipe is 1 cup of raw nuts to 4 cups of hot water. First, you need to soak the nuts overnight. Drain the soaking water, then blend the nuts and 4 cups of water on high for about 2 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve and add water, if necessary, until you get the right consistency. You can also add sweetener, vanilla or salt to suit your taste. Keep in mind that unsweetened nut milk has less sugar than cow’s milk so it won’t raise your glucose levels.
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You can use almonds, pistachios, hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans, peanuts, cashews or sesame seeds for making nut milk. Of course, the nutrients, flavor and consistency differ depending on the type of nut. Cashew milk is creamy and it’s a good source of calcium and vitamin E. Hazelnut milk is even creamier plus it’s packed with protein. Peanut milk has lots of magnesium, vitamin B-6 and vitamin E but it also has lots of calories so don’t guzzle it. Sesame seed milk is a great source of calcium and zinc. Pistachios don’t need to be soaked overnight so they’re perfect for making nut milk at the last minute.
Making nut milk is such a breeze that you can have fun taste-testing until you find your favorite. However, don’t make a huge batch because the homemade variety has no preservatives so it only lasts for few days in the refrigerator.
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