HOMEMADE STRAWBERRY ALMOND MILK

Strawberry Almond Milk

Homemade almond milk is sooooooo creamy and NOTHING like the almond milk you buy in the store.  Today I made some plain almond milk and when my son came home from school I used it to make him strawberry almond milk, which is one of his favorites.  As we were sitting around the kitchen island drinking the strawberry milk, I mentioned that I was going to post my recipe for plain almond milk and my husband told me that I NEEDED to post my recipe for the strawberry milk as well (he was literally telling me this while drinking the tiny amount of strawberry milk that was left straight out of the blender container).  I hope you enjoy the strawberry milk as much as we do!

INGREDIENTS FOR PLAIN ALMOND MILK

2 cups raw almonds

4 cups filtered water

INGREDIENTS FOR STRAWBERRY MILK

1 cup plain almond milk

1 ½ – 2 cups frozen strawberries

2 tsp. raw agave syrup (adjust depending upon the sweetness of your berries)

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Place the raw almonds in a container and fill the container with filtered water.  Place the container in the fridge overnight to soak.

Soak the Almonds in Water

Almonds Soaked Overnight in Fridge

NOTE: The almond milk can be made without soaking the almonds, but I strongly suggest that you do.  Soaking the nuts will make the milk more creamy, but the main reason you want to soak the nuts is to destroy the enzyme inhibitor.  Nuts were created with an enzyme inhibitor that prevents them from prematurely sprouting.  This inhibitor also makes it hard for many people to digest nuts well.  When you take the time to soak the nuts, the inhibitor is neutralized and the enzymes come to life…per my earlier post enzymes are very beneficial to us.

Rinse the soaked almonds under cold water.  At this point you may remove the almond skins if you’d like.  I personally don’t mind the skins and keep them on when I make my milk.

Rinse the Soaked Almonds

Remove the Skins if You'd Like

Place Rinsed Almonds in Vitamix w/ Water

Blend Thoroughly

Put the nut milk bag into a large bowl.  Pour the almond mixture into the nut milk bag and squeeze the liquid into the bowl.  Once all of the liquid is out of the bag your plain almond milk is complete. 

Place Nut Milk Bag in a Large Bowl

Pour Blended Mixture Into Bag

Squeeze Bag

Only Pulp Remaining

 Reserve the nut pulp for another recipe.  I put my pulp in a bag and lay it flat in the freezer until I am ready to use it in a recipe.

Almond Pulp

The plain almond milk is now complete.  I prefer to store the almond milk in the fridge in its plain state (great with cereal)…that way I can embellish however I’d like. 

Plain Almond Milk

Store Plain Almond Milk in the Fridge in a Mason Jar

Sometimes I will add some stevia for a sweeter taste or add some chocolate syrup and make chocolate milk (warmed-up it makes a very yummy hot cocoa), but our family’s FAVORITE almond milk is the strawberry…

Rinse out your blender.  Pour 1 cup of the plain almond milk into the blender.  Start the blender and add the frozen strawberries one at a time through the opening in the lid.  Blend until smooth.  Add the agave syrup and blend again.  Taste the strawberry milk and add more sweetener if needed.  Drink immediately as this is when the flavor is best.  It will not store well, so it is best to make it in small batches that you will drink right away.