How to Make Raw Almond Milk [Recipe]

Over the past year and a half, staying at home full time with my baby and now toddler has made me realize that I spend a lot of time in the kitchen. I love making healthy, homemade items for us to enjoy. Though I appreciate the convenience of pre-packaged food, I receive great satisfaction from making something myself. I have full control over the ingredients. After a recent search for an organic almond milk without any additives or sweeteners (yes, even natural and organic ones), I decided to make my own. Vita Nut Milk Bag is the best nut milk bag for making your own nut milks, raw juices, cold brew coffees and so much more.

Vita Nut Best Nut Milk Bag           ($9.95)

Rating: total green check marks out of 5.

The Good	The Not So Good
Rounded bottom for less waste	When drawn, strings can get in the way
No tearing under heat/squeezing
Ultra-fine mesh for better filtering
Reusable, quick-drying

Making raw almond milk is an easy process with just a few steps. Vita Nut's best milk bag helps to filter out the almond milk from the almond pulp and results in easy and sanitary clean up.

Homemade Raw Almond Milk

Ingredients
1 cup raw almonds, soaked in water (cover almonds and soak overnight, 8-12 hrs)
3 cups of water
Sweeteners such as dates (3-4 dates soaked for 1 hr), raisins, prunes, agave, honey, maple syrup (optional)
Vanilla or almond extract (optional)
Pinch of sea salt, to enhance flavor (optional)

Directions

1. Place almonds in a small bowl and cover with water. Soak overnight, 8-12 hours. Can also soak for 1-2 hours, if in a pinch.
2. If using dates, raisins or prunes as your sweetener, place those in the blender with a little bit of water and blend on highest speed until creamy. 
3. Drain and rinse the almonds and place in blender with 3 cups of water, any sweeteners, vanilla/almond extract and sea salt, if using. Omit sweeteners for unsweetened raw almond milk.
4. Blend on highest speed for 1 minute.
5. Place the milk bag over a large bowl and slowly pour the almond milk mixture into the bag. 
6. Hold the top of the bag closed and squeeze the bottom of the bag to release milk. Twisting the bag can also work. This creamy liquid is the raw almond milk.
7. Pour into a glass or airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 3-5 days. Shake container very well before using because the almond milk separates when sitting. 

Photo Directions

Drain and rinse soaked almonds. Place in blender with 3 cups of water and any other additions.

Blend on highest speed for 1 minute.

 

Place milk bag over a large bowl and slowly pour the almond milk mixture into the bag.

Let the almond milk drain, then squeeze the bottom and twist the bag to release the rest of the almond milk.

 

Notes

• A food processor can be used instead of a blender. The liquid tends to leak out, so you might want to do 2-3 batches.
• Cheese bag, cheese cloth, flour sacks, etc. can also be used. Cheese cloth tends to tear with twisting, so be careful when squeezing and twisting to release the almond milk.
• Recipe can be used to make any nut or seed milk. Most seeds do not need to be soaked or strained in the nut milk bag because they blend well with water. 
• Feel free to add any other flavorings or sweeteners to the blender.
• Liquid sweeteners can also be added to the strained milk.
• Almond pulp can be saved and used as an addition to things like yogurt, oatmeal, baked good, or dried/dehydrated to make raw almond flour.

I really liked using the Vita Nut milk bag to make my homemade raw almond milk. The bag was easy to use. I did not worry about it ripping or tearing when I was squeezing the almond milk. The almond pulp inside the bag was dry, meaning that the bag and my hands did a good job at straining the almond milk. When I was done straining the almond milk, I scooped out the almond pulp to save for muffins. I turned the milk bag inside out to get all of the almond pulp out. The rounded bottom helped to scoop everything out and resulted in easy clean up. A little natural soap and water and the milk bag was clean. The milk bag dried quickly and I reused it later for removing liquid from frozen spinach.

The strings at the top help to keep the bag cinched, but tend to get a bit long when they are drawn. I found that they got in the way while I was trying to squeeze the milk out. Maybe next time, I will tuck the strings into the bag.

Vita Nut best milk bag is the secret to quick and easy homemade nut milks, raw juices and more! No tearing, less mess and frustration, and easy clean up make Vita Nut milk bag the perfect accessory for your milk and juicing endeavors.

Disclosure: I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. All opinions are my own.