Recently my 5-year old discovered that chicken actually came from a…CHICKEN! He no now longer consumes chicken, meat, yogurt or milk (he’s even switched over to coconut milk ice-cream, although he has been know to consume some soft serve when we’re out!). He loves oatmeal for breakfast and was starting to miss the addition of a little milk. As crazy as it sounds, he woke up the other day and asked if I could make him some almond milk. How does a 5 year old know about almond milk (from his dietitian mother, of course!). I jumped at the chance to make yet another healthy and delicious creation in my Vitamix (I love that machine!).

While making almond milk might sound a bit ambitious, it’s actually quite easy. Start with a bag of organic almonds. Place them in a bowl, cover them with water and let them sit for about 24 hours. You can soak them for less time, but the longer you soak them, the creamer the milk will be. Drain and rinse the nuts, place them in the blender with fresh, filtered water (1:2 ratio nuts:water) and blend on high until the water is opaque white.

Pour the liquid through a fine mesh strainer and press out as much milk as possible. You will be left with smooth delicious almond milk and almond pulp (that you should save to use in other recipes…pancakes, smoothies, muffins. I promise I will post those too!).

Add the almond milk back to the blender with some vanilla and cinnamon and blend to combine the flavors. Store in little mason jars in the refrigerator and use on your cereal, in your smoothies, etc!

Homemade Almond Milk

1 cup raw, organic almonds

2 cups of water, plus more for soaking

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla

pinch of sea salt

Place almonds in a large bowl and cover with water. Leave to soak for 24-hours (or overnight). Drain and rinse the almonds. Place them in the blender with 2 cups of filtered water. Start the blender on low and work your way up to high, blending on high for about 2 minutes. Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl and press all of the liquid out of the almond meal (save the almond meal in the refrigerator for use later). Place the milk back in the blender with the cinnamon, vanilla and sea salt and blend for about 30 seconds. Refrigerate and enjoy!