Dairy free 'milks'

Making my own fresh, creamy milk in the morning has been part of my routine for many years now, using highly nutritious nuts, seeds or grains. The lovely thing about making your own 'milks' is not only that they are dairy free thus meaning no contribution to the nasty dairy industry, but also that you can change the flavour of your milk each time you make it if you wish, by using different nuts or seeds, grains or rice! I have my form favourites, but the method is simple and totally adaptable. I use my nut  or seed milk in tea, on my sprouted granola, proper porridge and for making desserts. It works in place of dairy milk in almost anything, so if you want to start making your own, here's how!

Almond milk

Makes 1 litre

Equipment: Blender, nut milk bag, large bowl

1 cup almonds, soaked for 6 hours or overnight

1 litre water

1 tbsp lecithin powder (optional)

1 tbsp honey/ fruit syrup

Pour away the water which the almonds have been soaking in and rinse well. Place the nuts into a blender and add the water. Blend until the water looks white and the nuts look as fine as possible. Pour the contents through a nut milk bag or fine muslin. Squeeze the bag gently until all the liquid has come through and you are left with the pulp in the bag. Save the pulp for drying and pour the liquid back into the blender.

Add the lecithin if using and the honey or fruit syrup and blend again until totally combined. Pour into a bottle or large jar and store in the fridge for up to 4 days

Whole, organic almonds ready to be soaked then blended with 4 cups of water                                                                    

Squeeze out the liquid through a nut milk bag or muslin

Add Lecithin and natural sweetener before decanting into a bottle ready to use! 

It's super easy once you make it part of your routine! I use nut milks as the base for my Thickshakes. The perfect healthy drink when you need something sweet and creamy!