Nut Milk Recipe

Recipe by Guri Bigham

Makes 1 quart

1 cup nuts – some need at least 4 hours of soaking (see below)
4 cups filtered water
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)
1 date or 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup (optional)

Store bought nut milks are often full of additives and come in unsustainable packaging. Making your own dairy-free nut milk is easy and healthy! It’s also a great zero-waste alternative as nuts are commonly found in bulk. This is the general recipe for most all nut milks – with the exclusion of Cashew, Macnut and Coconut milks that have their respective recipes linked. The bi-product of nut milk is the fibrous pulp and can be used to make gluten-free flour or added directly into baked goods, here's a recipe with nut pulp. Try to find nuts that grow where you are locally or from a sustainable source.

Some nuts need soaking and some don’t, here are a few examples:

Soak in filtered water for 4-8 hours or overnight: Almonds, Walnuts, Pecans, Tiger nuts
These nuts should NOT be soaked: Brazil nuts, Hazelnuts

Steps:

1. In a blender, place nuts, filtered water, salt, and optional vanilla/sweetener.

2. Blend on high speed until smooth.

3. Strain through a nut milk bag or fine cheese cloth into a bowl. Squeeze it until the pulp is dry. Save the pulp!

4. Serve immediately or save in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

5. To preserve the pulp into a gluten-free flour, dehydrate the nut pulp at 105° for a few hours until dry. Alternatively you can try to bake the pulp on very low heat to dry it.

6. You can use the fresh nut pulp within 2 days, add right into baked goods! Try the Nut Pulp Chocolate Confections