Homemade Almond Milk

Over the past few years, almond milk has become a major staple of my diet. These days I go through at least a quart of it per week, if not more.

I was never a huge milk drinker. I can remember the constant battle with my parents growing up: "Drink your milk!" I do understand that calcium and vitamin D are both key to a healthy diet and more importantly, healthy bones, but both are attainable thorough other foods and/or supplements. Hello, leafy greens!

I've always loved almonds. Raw almonds, almond cake, almond cookies, almond extract in banana milkshakes (a childhood favorite), and so on, and son on.

So it's no surprise that when I tried almond milk for the first time, I immediately loved it. These days I use it in everything—smoothies, oatmeal, cookies, cakes, frosting—you name it. Somewhat surprisingly, it's also a great dessert substitute for those times when you're craving a little something sweet but don't want to over-indulge. It's perfect with a little cinnamon and vanilla.

As I experiment more in the kitchen, I've become really conscious of trying to avoid processed foods if and when possible. If it's easy enough, why not just make it myself? Which is exactly what I decided as I realized I was spending close to $3 a week on store-bought almond milk. Granted, $3 isn't $30, but it adds up over time, and making it would be more cost-effective. My grocery store sells a bag of almonds for close to $7 or $8, so I knew that wasn't doable. But Trader Joe's, on the other hand... They sell a 1-pound bag for $4.99. I'm sure if you buy raw almonds in bulk online it's even cheaper, but for now I'm content with Traders Joe's.

Oh, and have I mentioned how easy it is to make almond milk? And how much better and more natural it tastes than the store-bought, processed stuff? It's amazing, and I can't believe I didn't start doing this sooner. I made it for the first time on Wednesday morning, and I already consumed almost an entire batch and made a second one. I also love that you can play around with the flavor, depending on what you're using it for. Sure, there's always the standard, plain almond milk, or you can make it a little sweeter and more flavorful with dates, vanilla extract and a cinnamon stick or two. I'm also curious to try blending in a little fruit, like blueberries or strawberries. So, have I convinced you? I promise this is one of those things that is 100 percent worth the little bit of extra effort it takes.

Homemade Almond Milk

Time: 5 minutes active, 12 hours inactive
Servings: 1 quart

Ingredients:

1 cup raw almonds
4 cups filtered water for soaking
4 cups filter water for blending
1/4 teaspoon salt, divided in two
1 date

Optional:

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cinnamon stick

Soak almonds, 4 cups water, and 1/8 teaspoon salt for 12 hours or overnight.

Drain, discard water, and rinse almonds thoroughly. Place in blender, add 4 cups water, and blend. Add date for sweetness (taste it, you can always add another one). For additional flavor add vanilla extract and soak cinnamon stick in milk once you transfer it to a container for storing in your refrigerator.

If you want to keep the almond pulp (I generally do), it's good to go as is. But if you want a smoother texture that's lower in calories, strain the milk through cheesecloth into a separate bowl/container, squeeze to remove all the liquid, and discard pulp.

This should keep in your refrigerator for up to five days.

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Mash

Cauliflower mash came into my life in high school, when my stepmom made it as part of the South Beach Diet. And then it left my life, quickly, not to appear again until this past weekend. Perhaps I didn't have the same appreciation for food that I have now (well, not perhaps, that's a fact). I definitely didn't have the same palate, and now I gravitate towards healthier foods. Whatever the reason at the time, I hated it, and it's been a long-running joke in our family ever since.

But then, this past weekend my parents were visiting New York, and we had quite a memorable meal at The East Pole, a new restaurant on the Upper East Side from the guys behind The Fat Radish. The best part of the meal? Shockingly enough, the cauliflower mash.

It was creamy, garlicy, and buttery. Perfectly seasoned, and the kind of dish that melts in your mouth. 

Needless to say, it drastically changed my opinion of cauliflower mash, and I knew I had to make it in my own kitchen. Where did I turn? To the new cookbook by Danielle Walker, the acclaimed blogger behind Against All Grain (a gluten-free, dairy-free, and grain-free blog).

As always, I tweaked the recipe slightly, and it did not disappoint. While it wasn't quite as buttery as what I had at The East Pole, it was no doubt healthier and certainly still full of flavor. It's a perfect alternative to mashed potatoes or polenta, and was a great addition to my Meatless Monday dinner last night.  

Roasted Garlic Cauliflower Mash

Time: 20 minutes

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

3 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 head cauliflower, trimmed into florets

1/4 cup almond milk, warmed

1/2 tablespoon butter, melted

1 1/2 teaspoons fresh scallion, diced

1 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Preheat oven to broil. Peel garlic cloves and place in a small dish and drizzle with olive oil. Place on lower oven rack and roast for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown and soft. 

Meanwhile, bring a medium to large pot of water to a boil and add cauliflower. Cook for 12 minutes or until tender. Drain water and place cauliflower in a food processor. 

Add garlic, almond milk, butter, scallion, salt, and pepper to food processor. Process until smooth (consistency should be the same as mashed potatoes).

Gluten Free Vanilla Maple Chia Pudding

The precise moment escapes me, but sometime over the past year I introduced chia seeds into my diet. Do you ever learn about or notice a new type of food, and then all of the sudden you start seeing that food everywhere? The evolution of my relationship with chia seeds was not dissimilar.

We all know I'm a sucker for healthy foods. So let's be perfectly honest: chia seeds had me at omega-3 fatty acids and fiber.

If you've eaten chia seeds before, you'll know that when soaked in liquid, they develop an interesting texture. Almost slimy and gummy-like. In other words, not for everyone. But don't let that deter you. If you're turned off, you don't have to eat them on their own, like in a pudding. They blend seamlessly into smoothies.

When I decided to write this post, I figured I'd do a little digging to find out exactly what the health benefits of these curious little seeds are. I came across a great article on The Huffington Post that lists ten reasons why you should add chia seeds to your diet. To start with, they can help boost energy, stabilize blood sugar, aid digestion, and lower cholesterol. And as I mentioned previously, they're also full of omega-3 fatty acids and fiber. One ounce has 11 grams of fiber, which is 42% of the daily recommended value, not to mention 4 grams of protein. If you're interested you can read the nutritional information here.

Adding chia seeds to my daily breakfast smoothie was as far as I'd gotten, but recipes for chia pudding kept popping up on my favorite food blogs. Last weekend when I was home in Bethesda, MD, I stopped to pick up a green juice from Purée (a new-ish juice bar in the area that I highly recommend), I grabbed a container of their chia pudding to see what all of the fuss was about. I was an immediate convert. Mixed with cacao and almond milk, and topped off with a big heap of cashew butter and more cacao, it was perfect. The texture of the cashew butter melded nicely with that of the soaked chia seeds, and the combined flavors were delightful. The pudding was sweet without being too sweet, and the infusion of cacao added an incredibly satisfying flavor. (I'm hoping that after this glowing review, Purée might be so kind as to share the recipe with me.)

In the meantime I'll share with you a simple recipe of my own that I developed this week. What I've come to like the most about this is that for a dish relatively small in volume, it's very filling. A perfect energy-booster before a morning workout (necessary for those 45-minute SoulCycle classes I love oh-so-much), or an easy on-the-go snack for those days when you're running from one thing to the next. In fact, I'm eating some right now.

Gluten Free Vanilla Maple Chia Pudding

Time: 2 minutes active, 30 minutes inactive
Servings: 2

Ingredients:

1/2 cup chia seeds
1 cup plus 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-2 teaspoons pure maple syrup, depending on desired sweetness

Place chia seeds, 1 cup almond milk, and vanilla extract in a jar and mix with a small whisk or fork for 5-10 seconds. Let sit for a minute or so, and then mix again for another 5-10 seconds. Do this for about 2-3 minutes, or until chia seeds start to absorb almond milk and expand. Add maple syrup. Transfer to a refrigerator and let sit for at least 30 minutes (can also be made the night before).

When you're ready to eat the pudding, test the texture. You may want to, as I do, add more almond milk to break up the consistency. If the flavor isn't quite to your liking, add more vanilla extract, maple syrup, or even cinnamon. Strawberries, blueberries, or blackberries would also make a nice topping.

Enjoy!

Tomato, Plum, Mozzarella & Basil Salad

Disclaimer: I recognize that we've already unwittingly waved goodbye to summer, and hence summer produce, but this salad is too good not to share. And honestly, I think we still have a few weeks of fresh, juicy tomatoes left (and hopefully plums).

I didn't see this recipe in magazine or on a blog, nor did I have it at a restaurant. I was simply inspired by the gorgeous plums at the farmers market. I knew I had to buy them, but at the time I had no idea how I'd use them. It didn't take long before my wheels started turning. Why not add a sweet kick to my summer sustenance: tomato and mozzarella salad? The texture of plums isn't all that different from that of tomatoes (perhaps a bit more tough, but these were so ripe).

I couldn't have been more right. With a little olive oil and honey drizzled on top, this was perfect. And so elegantly simple, with only six ingredients (counting the olive oil and honey). After eating it for a week straight I made it for a few girlfriends I had over for dinner, and their reaction was exactly the same. How is it that I'd never thought of this before? So what are you waiting for? Make this while you still can. Otherwise it's tah-tah until next summer.

Tomato, Plum, Mozzarella & Basil Salad

Time: 10 minutes

Serves: 2

1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half

1 cup plums, diced

1/2 cup fresh buffalo mozzarella

2 tablespoons fresh basil

2 teaspoons olive oil  

1 teaspoon honey 

Salt and pepper to taste

Mix ingredients together in a bowl and enjoy!