Homemade Almond Milk

Late Saturday night, whilst preparing a lovely brew, I noticed I was running out of almond milk. Thinking about my Sunday morning pre-swim cuppa, I realised something had to be done. I have become so lazy lately and have been buying Unsweetened Almond Breeze from Morrisons. Now at 23:30, they were definitely going to be closed. I thus resorted to my old ways and decided to make some fresh Almond Milk.

Ingredients

• 1 cup organic almonds

• 4 cups bottled water

What you will need

• Container for soaking and straining

• Blender

• Milk nut bag

• 1 litre bottle or mason jars for storing

• Funnel

So, what is this phytic acid? It is

an antioxidant [which] may help protect against certain types of cancer and high blood cholesterol. [It] easily binds with other minerals, including zinc, calcium, iron and magnesium. Source

Considering I am deficient in iron and potentially magnesium, I made sure I followed this step so that I do not get adverse effects from the almonds.

The next morning, I strained the almonds before adding them and the water to my Tefal Blendforce. I blitzed them on the highest speed and then proceeded to strain. I have a large milk nut bag which I placed in the bowl before pouring the mixture in. I strained the first half of the milk and poured that in the litre bottle. I strained the remaining milk and also bottled that as well.

My tea on Sunday was scrumptious and had a nice rich milk to accompany it.

I was going to have some porridge on Monday morning to taste this yummy milk but there was just far too much chaos in the office to permit that. 😔

Let me know if you try this recipe.

My views on cow’s milk

I have never really opened up about my feelings on cow’s milk. Now a huge proportion of us are walking around thinking we have a milk intolerance when in reality, we shouldn’t really be consuming milk. Touted to improve your health because of its high calcium content, there are many adverse effects to dairy especially to the gut. People who are lactose intolerant often experience gastrointestinal symptoms such as bloating, flatulence, IBS and constipation, to name just a few.

Hardly any of us ask the following questions:

Why do young drink milk from their mothers? To gather the nutrients from her breast milk, thus boosting their immune system until they can gather these nutrients themselves.

Do animals drink breast milk after being weaned? No other animals do but humans.

Why do humans still drink, not only milk but, milk from other animals? That’s anyone’s guess. Who really would want to suckle from a cow??? If you ask me, I’d say it’s to boost the cereal market. Sad times. 🙁

Anyway, there is a plethora of micro-organisms and bacteria just lurking about in milk including Salmonella and Coxiella. More info on these and their side effects can be found here.

Dr Mark Hyman, author of The Ultramind Solution, shares his views on milk here. This man is the reason I began to investigate a healthier way of eating and a living a much healthier lifestyle. If you haven’t read this book, it is worth reading my lovelies. It will change your life.

That being said, some people are suckers for cheese but I am a sucker for some good ol' yogurt especially in my smoothies. I'm human. Oh well.

Enjoy!