Homemade Almond Milk

We aren't dairy free. But we do prefer a non dairy milk in some applications - like in smoothies or protein shakes.  (We are now eating a primarily plant-based diet) So we were buying almond milk or cashew milk for that. But all those cartons add up. We didn't learn until recently that those paper/cardboard cartons are lined with plastic.

So for us, the benefits of making nut milk at home are twofold. It tastes better homemade and we aren't wasting those plastic lined containers anymore.

Here is a super easy recipe for almond milk. Feel free to swap almonds for any other nut or a combination of them! Last time we made cashew almond.

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Almond Milk

Ingredients:
1 cup raw almonds
2 cups water for soaking + 2 (or more) cups for blending*
(optional) sweetener, such as dates, honey, sugar, agave or maple syrup.
(optional) vanilla extract

Method:
Soak the almonds in water for 8-72 hours. A longer soak will mean more creamy almond milk. If you soak for more than 12 hours, you should keep them in the fridge.
Drain and rinse almonds in a strainer under fresh running water.
Put the almonds in a blender with 2 cups of water and blend for 2 minutes on high.
Strain the milk using a nut milk bag, cheese cloth or thin kitchen towel. Set almond meal aside.**
If adding sweetener or flavoring, add your milk back to the blender with sweetener and flavoring of choice. We use 2 pitted dates.
Blend until well incorporated.
Strain milk through sieve to catch any date pulp.
Store in the fridge in a glass jar for 2-3 days.

Notes:
* The less water you use, the creamier the milk will be.

** You can reserve almond meal for use in baked goods or smoothies.
If you won't use the almond meal, you could always find a friend who would like it, or you can compost it.

Making almond milk at home is not necessarily less expensive than buying it from the store. But there are some other benefits. First, you get to decide what exactly goes into it and can opt to make it organic. When you buy your almonds and other items in the bulk bins, you do not have the waste of the packaging. You can make as much or little as you want at a time. You also can control how creamy or how sweetened you want it to be.

Zero Waste Coffee

There is something so satisfying about the aroma of freshly ground and brewed coffee. It’s enough to make you smile even though you have to get out of bed and you desperately wanted just 5 more minutes of sleep. For some people, coffee is a must have, a necessity to start the day or for their personality to kick in. For others, having a warm beverage in the morning is just a comforting part of the routine.

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The process of brewing coffee can be pretty wasteful, especially when it comes to those single use coffee pods and disposable coffee cups. But it doesn't have to be.

An estimated 50 billion* disposable coffee 

cups are used each year in the US alone.

If you’re buying coffee out, then you are in for some real savings, in money and time! If you are currently making coffee at home then it'll be even easier. Also, if you drink black coffee, then you are ahead of the game. We are not black coffee drinkers...

• First, the coffee. Every grocery store I've been to that has bulk bins - has bulk coffee. And they usually have a huge variety so you're bound to find one that you like. Our local natural grocery store has a pretty good selection of bulk coffee with organic options. It's nice if you can find one that is also fair trade and locally roasted! 

• Second, sweetener. We both like our coffee sweetened and generally just use organic unrefined cane sugar - which we find in the bulk bins. You can also use brown sugar, honey, agave, or maple syrup which can be found in the bulk section as well. 

• Next, milk or cream. The milk and cream we buy comes in glass containers**. They also have half and half but we find that it's actually less expensive to buy a pint of cream and a quart of whole milk and mix them ourselves, then we have a pint of whole milk left over, either to use plain in coffee or for some other recipes.

• Lastly, the brewing method. There are many options for brewing your coffee. Traditional coffee makers, french press, or pour over. While we have had many different brewing methods over the years, we prefer the french press or the pour over because they take up less space and you can find them made of glass, ceramic or stainless steel.  

By our calculations, it costs us just under 50 cents per cup, including organic unrefined sugar, and local non-homogenized half and half. Whereas when we were buying coffee at a cafe, we were spending about $10 per day. Obviously that comes down to beverage choice. We normally don't opt for plain coffee with cream at a coffee shop, but I don't know where you can get even regular coffee for under $1 a cup.

Although our main goal for going towards zero waste isn't necessarily a financial one, we are definitely seeing that we are saving money in some areas.

*I found this on CNN website - but I couldn’t find the reference from their source. One of their references led to which.co.uk, who estimates 2.5 billion paper cups are thrown away in the UK. 

** The lids on the glass milk containers are made out of recyclable plastic. Not a perfect solution - but maybe some day they'll have a better option for lids.