Good Eats:: Homemade Almond Milk

I am so excited to be making my own almond milk. It's one of those things where I found myself thinking, "Why haven't I been doing this all along?" Well, when I realized how easy it is with a little foresight and a great blender (If I haven't shared before, I ♥ my Ninja blender!), I had to try it. 

I learned how to master this little task by following these instructions at The Kitchn (by apartment therepy). Voila! My very first bottle of homemade almond milk.

So far, I've used it in my morning oatmeal, my tea latte (I make a heavenly, frothy and delicious tea latte - possibly a recipe share in the future), smoothies, and I'm sure something else I can't remember right now. 

Ingredients::
1 C almonds
water
1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
1/2 tbsp honey (optional)

How to::
1. Place almonds in a glass jar, cover with water and soak overnight or all day (roughly 12 hours).  Drain and rinse thoroughly. Add to blender with 3 cups of water. Add cinnamon and honey to taste. Blend until almonds are finely ground.  Strain with a fine mesh strainer over a wide bowl (you can also use cheese cloth, but I never seem to have it around when I need it). Let sit until most of the liquid drips out.  

2. Next, get a metal cookie sheet for your almond meal. Oh yeah, this lovely little recipe also yields you the bonus of some healthy almond meal for baking. The almond meal will be left over in the strainer still sopping wet with milk. I just squeeze out the milk with my hands and crumble over my cookie tray. Then set the oven to 400 degrees and toast the almond meal, stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes. (This will make your house smell all warm and toasty like a fresh bakery. Do this before having company over instead of lighting candles.) Pulse the almond meal quickly in the blender to break it up and make sure it is a fine meal for baking. Store in an airtight container.

Don't forget to also store your almond milk in a sealable container you can keep in the fridge. Don't make too much at once as it only lasts a few days.