NoraKathleen Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 Most dairy I can do without, but I love a bit of cream in my coffee. During my last whole30, I used coconut cream and kind of burned myself out. Wanted to give almond milk a try and decided to make my own after not finding a compliant option at the store. I have made two batches so far. BATCH ONE: 1c. Almonds 3c. Water One whole vanilla bean split in half and removed the seeds Cinnamon (did not measure, maybe 1/2 tsp?) I soaked almonds for six hours. (All I had on hand was sliced almonds, I would have soaked whole almonds overnight). I used a blender to blend and then strained with a fine strainer. Oh yes, on a whim at the last moment, I added some coconut cream in the blender, maybe 1/4 cup. Mistake #1, I did not use cheesecloth, it was gritty gritty gritty. Advantage: it was a nice flavor once I finally got the grit out the following day with cheesecloth BATCH TWO Armed with cheesecloth, I felt empowered to try again. A couple of changes based on my store visit... The bulk bins were out of raw whole almonds so I got slivered blanched almonds. Also, I bought vanilla powder and thought I would try that out. 1.5 c of almonds 3c water 1tsp vanilla powder Cinnamon After soaking overnight this time, I blended (this time without coconut cream, only because I forgot) and used cheesecloth to strain. It looked great and I was so excited to add it to my coffee. Mistake # 2- bitter bitter bitter, a huge disappointment, I was much closer in batch one, leading me to the following questions: Was it because I used blanched almonds? Was it the vanilla powder? Did I let it soak too long? My guess is the almonds, and before I try again tomorrow, I thought I would try for some advice. Almond milk advice: GO! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vian Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 I tried to do the same thing. I made home-made almond milk for my coffee, but found that it was not anywhere near as creamy as dairy milk. I used whole raw almonds, soaked them overnight in enough water to cover them by about an inch. Then I drained the soaking water off and added fresh water. I used a 1:2 ratio of almonds (pre-soak volume) to water, so 1 cup almonds to 2 cups water. Then I blended it up and strained through muslin cloth. It didn't do hardly anything to the flavor of the coffee. What I ended up doing is taking the home made almond milk, which is only good for about 2 days in the fridge and left me with about 1 cup almond milk, then I added about a cup of coconut cream, and about 1/2 cup coconut oil and boiled it for a couple minutes, which sort of pasteurizes it so it will last a little longer, but also emulsifies all the fats with the water-based almond milk. I ended up with a thick, rich, cream that works beautifully in my coffee. I also added a vanilla bean to it while it boiled. Oh, and I use a stick blender on my coffee after I add the creamer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missmary Posted January 9, 2014 Share Posted January 9, 2014 bitter bitter bitter, a huge disappointment It could likely have been the almonds. I would taste one of your almonds first and see how it is. They should get sweeter, actually, after soaking, but just a little bit. Longer soaking (within reason-not more than 12ish hours?) is better. Changing water once might help. If they have skins, after soaking you might try slipping off the skins (takes a while but removes bitterness. When I used to make almond milk*, I would do almonds, water and a pinch of sea salt, nothing more. You might want to try making it that way, then adding vanilla powder to taste? *I never make this anymore...eventually I just got over needing anything "milky" in my coffee. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drtracyb Posted January 11, 2014 Share Posted January 11, 2014 I used one cup of raw almonds and soaked them in water. I didn't feel like running the tap to get warm water so I microwaved the almond/ water slurry for four minutes to warm the water. After an hour, the skins slid right off of the almonds! I was thrilled. My recipe: 1 cup blanched skinless almonds to 3 cups filtered water. Add 3 tablespoons of coconut oil, a pinch of salt and some vanilla. Blend, strain and add maple syrup or not, to taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missmary Posted January 11, 2014 Share Posted January 11, 2014 add maple syrup or not, to taste. of course, during the whole30 the answer is NOT!! Maple syrup is not allowed, remember? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.