Quick, Strain-Free Homemade Seed Milks
Plant based milk recipes: no straining required!
Making your own nut milk is MUCH easier than you may think. Most nut milks require a tedious process of soaking nuts for 24 hours, blending, and “milking” via cheesecloth to reap the beautiful benefits of an additive & filler-free beverage. However, if you're constantly on the go (like me) this isn't a very therapeutic process. This is why cashew milk and seed milks are GAME CHANGERS in terms of saving time. I actually created these recipes by accident…I soaked my cashews too long, making them so soft and delicate that once I started blending, it immediately turned into milk! No straining needed. Pure magic for a health nut like me…get it?!
Cost Friendly
Not only does making nut milk ensure that it’s fresh, and contains no additives or chemicals, it also saves moolah. Store bought nut milks can get quite expensive - especially if you're choosing the organic, high quality, sweetener free brands. When you make it yourself, you cut out the middleman and save money on the shipping, delivery, and packaging fees. Buying organic nuts in bulk also saves money on packaging costs. Other great strain-free options are: hemp, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. Among all nuts & seeds, Sunflower and pumpkin are the cheapest.
Nutritional Benefits of soaking:
Although the soaking still requires an extra step of prep, the nutritional benefits outweigh the time suck. Soaking your nuts and seeds prior to consumption aid in removing phytic acid, which in excess can cause intestinal discomfort and hinders digestion. I have a very sensitive stomach and personally find soaking all of my nuts (and beans) very soothing for the gut. Just to note, make sure you use filtered water for 8 hours (or overnight) before making the recipes below AND MAKE SURE you dump that water out and use fresh, filtered water when it’s time to add FRESH water to your blender. If you don’t, you’ll be consuming the toxic water full of phytates which defeat the purpose of soaking altogether.
Another nutritional benefit of making seed milk is the additional fiber you would otherwise lose by straining. You also know exactly what’s going into it: no stabilizers, additives, or fake sweeteners.
Better for the environment and less waste
I don’t know about you, but I always feel guilty tossing the excess pulp whenever I make almond milk and end up frantically googling “leftover almond meal recipes”. By the time I’m actually free to make almond meal cookies or bread with the pulp - it’s moldy. Not to mention almonds use ALOT of our environment's water to grow because they’re rooted deep within our soils. By no means am I saying you should stop drinking almond milk or eating almond butter (I mean I’m not going to stop), but there are better, cheaper alternatives if you want to switch things up. Moral of the story: making seed milks and cashew milk is a time saver, better for the environment, cost efficient, nutrient dense, and DELICIOUS!
Recipe Time:
The only caveat to preservative free milk, is you need to consume within 3 days...a great way to utilize this milk is in smoothies or ginger golden turmeric lattes at night before bed 😴
Sweet Cashew Milk:
Ingredients:
Vitamix (or high power blender)
3 dates
1/2 tbsp of sea salt
1 cup of raw cashews
3 cups of FILTERED water
1 1/2 tablespoons of cinnamon
1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1. Soak raw cashews for at least 8 hours (or overnight) in fridge with water. I used a mason jar covered with water. In the morning, rinse them well as they release toxins when soaked.
2. Place the nuts and 3 cups of water in Vitamix (or high powered blender) with 3 pitted dates, cinnamon, and vanilla.
3. Blend on high for 3 minutes
4. Add ice cubes or refrigerate and BAM you have beautiful,creamy & delicious homemade cashew milk.
Hemp Milk:
Ingredients:
1 cup hemp seeds
3 cups filtered water
Vitamix or strong blender
1. No need to soak the seeds! Combine ingredients and blend on high for 3 minutes in a high speed blender like a Vitamix. I find the best results from my Vitamix or a food processor. It really macerates the seeds.
2. Store in airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge. Separation will occur. Shake before each use to mix ingredients.
Pumpkin Seeds Milk:
Ingredients:
1 cup raw, unsalted pumpkin seeds
3 cups filtered water
Vitamix or strong blender
1. No need to soak the seeds! Combine ingredients and blend on high for 3 minutes in a high speed blender like a Vitamix.
2. Store in airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge. Separation will occur. Shake before each use to mix ingredients.
Sunflower Seed Milk:
Ingredients:
1 cup raw, unsalted sunflower seeds
3 cups filtered water
Vitamix or strong blender
1. No need to soak the seeds! Combine ingredients and blend on high for 3 minutes in a high speed blender like a Vitamix.
2. Store in airtight container for up to 3 days in the fridge. Separation will occur. Shake before each use to mix ingredients.
What’s your favorite type of seed or nut milk?!