The best homemade nut milk.
TBH, we’ve been reluctant to buy this machine. Not sure why, but after years of overspending on poor quality store-bought nut based milks with tons of preservatives, mountains of plastic thrown into a recycle bin probably never being recycled… we opted to buy a unit. Immediate love. We make about 4 batches of milk per week (saving us about $5 per bottle that we would buy) and the ingredient cost for what you use – honestly it has been a win.
I love creating whatever type of milk. My strategy has been to use the bulk of less expensive ingredients combined with the nuts of choice. Rolled oats, coconut flakes, flax seeds etc are my go-to bulking ingredient then mixed with whatever nuts we wish. My typical go-to’s are cashew or almond. But any nut would work from pecans to pistachios! Combinations also work beautifully!
So the Almond Cow machine has a basket that you attach to the top. The basket holds all of your ingredients. The unit itself is where you add the water for blending. The ingredient basket is not that large so you aren’t using a ton of ingredients. There is a max fill line that is indicated on the basket and you can use whatever ingredients (nuts/seeds/grains) with a blend of salt and sweetener and you’re good to go. I’ll be sharing one basic variation we’ve been loving but seriously – the options are endless!
Optional thickeners:
I do use sunflower lecithin powder in my milk recipe for added thickness and creaminess. Some benefits are listed here for reference. This is an optional ingredient if you prefer not to use it. I’ve also found that adding 2 tbl of a vanilla protein powder work to boost the creaminess as well!
Sunflower Almond Milk
Equipment
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1 Almond Cow machine
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup sunflower seeds (I used salted)
- 1/2 cup raw almonds
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tbl maple syrup or 2 pitted Medjool dates
- 1 tbl Sunflower lecithin powder
- 1 tsp Cinnamon or vanilla extract
- Fresh water to the minimum water line
Instructions
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Place all of your ingredients into the basket. Work the top into the basket ingredients (wiggling back and forth) until you can screw to lock in to the top (follow the arrows on your basket for direction. Fill the stainless container to the minimum water line. Place the top (with basket) onto the base and plug it in. The green light near the cow power button is one. Press the button and allow the machine to run through the cycles (if the green light is flashing, it's still proceeding through its cycles). I then run the cycle again one more time. Once it's completed, remove the top and sit the entire top portion into the small collection plastic holder. Allow to drain completely and pour into the base liquid into a glass container. Any extra milk that drains in your small collection basket also can be added to your milk container. Unscrew your collection basket and scoop out your nut milk pulp into a container. You can store that in the fridge or freezer for future use.
I’ve been using my Weck’s jars for storage. Because I like to try to make various types of milk each time, it makes it easier to keep them all separate v. one large half filled container. If I make a double batch of one type of milk I use a larger 1/2 gallon sized glass container. Each one of my Weck’s jars holds one batch of milk nicely.
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— Knead to Cook
