Homemade: Milk Alternatives
With the rising cost of living, we will explore in a series of articles how you can create homemade versions of your favourite recipe – for less! Today we look at Milk Alternatives. We love keeping our favourite milk alternatives to hand. The good thing about many of the milk alternatives that we sell at Healthy Supplies, is that they are UHT. Meaning they don’t have to be stored in the fridge until opened.
We also like making our own milk alternatives! It’s a great way to use up extra nuts and you can tailor the flavour to suit you. It also helps you out when you are in a pinch and either can’t get your favourite milk alternative or you are waiting for your next Healthy Supplies order to arrive!
Check out some of our favourite recipes!
Brazil nut milk is creamier and richer than other dairy alternatives. Like all of our milk alternatives, it is easy to make, and can be prepared using pre-soaked or dry brazil nuts. Brazil Nut milk is a great source of a powerful antioxidant – Selenium.
Selenium is a powerful antioxidant that fights oxidative stress and helps defend your body from chronic conditions, such as heart disease, Alzheimer’s, and cancer, as well as premature aging and the risk of stroke (1).
Homemade macadamia nut milk is a great source of vitamins and minerals. Macadamia nuts contain one of the highest levels of mono-unsaturated fats which are essential for heart health. Macadamia nuts are also a good source of Vitamin E. This vitamin helps maintain healthy skin and eyes, and strengthen the body’s natural defence against illness and infection (the immune system) (2). Macadamia nut milk is really easy to make. Simply soak 140g of macadamia nuts for 2 -3 hours, then blend with water and your choice of flavourings.
Almond milk was one of the earliest recipes that we created. It started a culinary love affair with making our own nut milks and we’ve been obsessed ever since. Almonds are a great nut to make milk alternative from. They are rich in healthy fats, magnesium and vitamin E, meaning they are thought to help lower cholesterol, maintaining blood sugar levels and help prevent coronary heart disease (3).
We love using cashews in recipes. They make things so creamy without the need for dairy. Cashew nut milk is loaded with vitamins, minerals, healthy fats, and other beneficial plant compounds. Cashew nut milk is rich in polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids. Including these healthy fats in your diet may help decrease your risk of heart disease. (4)
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/selenium-benefits#1.-Acts-as-a-powerful-antioxidant
- https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamins-and-minerals/vitamin-e/#:~:text=Vitamin%20E%20helps%20maintain%20healthy,infection%20(the%20immune%20system).
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/9-proven-benefits-of-almonds#TOC_TITLE_HDR_5
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/cashew-milk-benefits#TOC_TITLE_HDR_3