The prospect of making your own plant milks at home can be a daunting proposition. You need to trust your instincts, and you’ll run into a lot of recipes that describe esoteric equipment and lengthy preparations and the need to plan ahead (overnight nut soaking!)
In this easy guide, I will go over the basic outline of a plant-milk recipe, that can be applied to practically ANY nut or seed to produce your own plant milk, and a few variations you can use to get different results, whether they be for flavor, sweetness, or speed.
The never fail plant milk recipe is:
- 1 cup of soft, or softened nuts or seeds
- 20-24 cups water (room temperature)
- pinch of salt
- 1 tbs of liquid sweetener or 1-2 dates
- Blend on high 30 seconds (a high-powered blender, like a Vitamix or Belndtec is preferable but not necessary)
- Add additional water from 16-24 oz, for a maximum total of 48 ounces, less water= thicker and creamier result.
- Strain, if desired.
Now for the hacks:
Almonds and cashews are best when soaked overnight. In a pinch for time, put them in a container that can hold more than 4x the volume of nuts (so for 1 cup of nuts a 6 cup container is best) and fill with boiling water and let sit for 1 hour. This ensures the nuts are soft enough to blend for optimal nutrients and creaminess.
Hemp seeds and flax seeds do not need to be soaked. Hemp seeds do not need to be strained.
Soak the dates in with the nuts for extra sweetness and ease of blending.
A higher nut/seed ratio to water produces a creamer, whereas the above ratios are ideal for “milks”.
Add vanilla extract, or other liquid essences, or extracts for flavors. Simmer with cocoa powder for chocolate milk.
Lasts 3-4 days refrigerated, shorter if not strained.
Big Picture Vegan 