Raw vegan milk, made with raw nuts or seeds, is easy, healthy, and wonderful. It's cholesterol free, full of nutrients, and it's much easier on the planet. Raw vegan milk is perfect for drinking by itself, adding to smoothies, or eating with Raw granola (or any cereal!). Yum!
When I make a nut or seed milk I usually make it with hemp seeds, because they're packed with nutrition, I love their flavor, and no presoaking is required. Hemp seeds' amino acid profile dominates with the 8 essential amino acids (10 if you're elderly or a child), making it an excellent vegetarian source of "complete" protein. Go hemp!
However, you can make Raw vegan milk out of a variety of nuts/seeds. Here are some things to keep in mind. Always try to get raw, organic nuts and seeds if you can. When using cashews, hemp seeds, macadamia nuts or Brazil nuts, you basically don't have to soak them before hand. Just put them in the blender with the following ingredients in the recipe below, and blend. Based on the consistency that you (and your family) like, you can simply increase or decrease the amount of water and sweetness. If you don't have a high powered blender you might want to briefly chop the cashews, macadamia nuts, and/or Brazil nuts before blending to make it easier.
If you're using pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, etc... then the general rule is to soak them before blending them for 6-8 hours (or overnight). This is done to release the enzyme inhibitors and make them easier to digest. Simply put them in a bowl on your counter, with enough water to cover by about an inch. After 6-8 hours, drain and rinse. Then, you're ready to use them in your Raw vegan milk recipe.
Raw vegan milk will stay fresh in your refrigerator for up to five days. It'll separate when it's been sitting in your refrigerator so simply shake it up before serving. It also freezes pretty well (you might want to make a couple of batches at once and freeze them in glass mason jars).
CREAMY DREAMY HEMP MILK
By Kristen Suzanne of KristensRaw.com
Yield 4 cups
When I make a nut or seed milk I usually make it with hemp seeds, because they're packed with nutrition, I love their flavor, and no presoaking is required. Hemp seeds' amino acid profile dominates with the 8 essential amino acids (10 if you're elderly or a child), making it an excellent vegetarian source of "complete" protein. Go hemp!
However, you can make Raw vegan milk out of a variety of nuts/seeds. Here are some things to keep in mind. Always try to get raw, organic nuts and seeds if you can. When using cashews, hemp seeds, macadamia nuts or Brazil nuts, you basically don't have to soak them before hand. Just put them in the blender with the following ingredients in the recipe below, and blend. Based on the consistency that you (and your family) like, you can simply increase or decrease the amount of water and sweetness. If you don't have a high powered blender you might want to briefly chop the cashews, macadamia nuts, and/or Brazil nuts before blending to make it easier.
If you're using pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, etc... then the general rule is to soak them before blending them for 6-8 hours (or overnight). This is done to release the enzyme inhibitors and make them easier to digest. Simply put them in a bowl on your counter, with enough water to cover by about an inch. After 6-8 hours, drain and rinse. Then, you're ready to use them in your Raw vegan milk recipe.
Raw vegan milk will stay fresh in your refrigerator for up to five days. It'll separate when it's been sitting in your refrigerator so simply shake it up before serving. It also freezes pretty well (you might want to make a couple of batches at once and freeze them in glass mason jars).
CREAMY DREAMY HEMP MILK
By Kristen Suzanne of KristensRaw.com
Yield 4 cups
2 1/2 cups water, more if desired
1 1/2 cups hemp seeds
1 - 2 tablespoons raw agave nectar or 2 - 3 dates, pitted (optional)
Blend all of the ingredients until creamy and smooth.
Variations:
- Make it vanilla by adding the seeds of a vanilla bean or some vanilla extract
Variations:
- Make it vanilla by adding the seeds of a vanilla bean or some vanilla extract
- Make it chocolate by adding 1-2 tablespoons (or more!) of raw chocolate powder :)
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33 comments:
This is great! I am printing this post right now. Where do you buy your hemp seeds from?
Also another quick question. When I was blending the nut butters, the sunflower seed and pumpkin would not get past the powder stage, so I had to add a little coconut oil. Is this normal? Keep in mind I don't have a Vitamix, just a cheap-o food processor, so I didn't know if this was the reason why, or if that was normal.
Thanks!!
I've always been afraid of raw milk because I'm sure that when I try it I'll be expecting that same smooth milky feeling from skim cow's milk. I am intrigued though :) what are the main taste and texture differences you've found?
Hi Foods That Fit,
Adding oil can be helpful, depending on the nut or seed and the tool being used to process it (I usually use my food processor, too).
Hi Danielle,
If you blend it thoroughly, add more water (in your case since you probably want it thinner), then it can have the texture of skim milk. However, depending on the nut or seed being used, you would probably want to strain it out with a nutmilk bag, too.
I'd recommend not consuming milk from cows. You might want to check out www.milksucks.com for information. Also, although not raw, organic rice milk is very much like the texture of cow's milk. It tastes great and you can find it at health food stores. I like the Whole Foods 365 brand, but there are others out there.
Cheers,
Kristen
I'm also curious where you purchase your raw hemp seeds. They are something like 14 to 19/pound at Whole Foods. That's beyond my budget for milk, for sure!
Oops! Sorry I neglected to answer that question.
I usually link to the places I source ingredients in the links in my post. I buy in bulk to get better prices and the link to amazon for the hemp seeds should be a better deal than Whole Foods.
Yeah, buying thru amazon, in bulk, is about half the price if my math is correct. My brain isn't awake yet... I had 3hrs sleep last night. Woke up early to go see the morning showing of Terminator - haha.
Cheers,
Kristen
I find hemp milk to be so expensive! Thanks for the recipe here, I'll have to try making my own =)
You can also blend a ripe banana with your desired amount of water, cinnamon/nutmeg if desired, or dates, vanilla bean, scraped, etc., to make banana milk (which I think is healthier or an alternative to nut/seed milk). :)
I love raw hemp milk WAY better than the boxed. :)
Thanks so much for posting this! I usually use Living Harvest brand which I love but it is not raw and I also don't like to use the pre-packaged stuff. I'm definitely going to try this!
Hi Utopian Kitchen,
Sure :) that's a banana smoothie :) I love those!
Cool. I didn't know you don't have to soak cashews, macadamia nuts or Brazil nuts. Thanks for that tip!
I adore hempmilk! thanks for posting :)
Thanks for the info & the recipe (I've been soaking my cashews - needlessly I see). I haven't tried hemp "milks" yet, but I've bookmarked this recipe. Can't wait to try it!
Hi everyone,
Let me clarify... you can certainly soak cashews to make for easier blending. It's just that most "raw" cashews have been heat treated to some degree so soaking isn't going to do anything really beneficial other than make them softer for blending. And, if you do soak them, they only need about 1-2 hours to start getting soft.
I've "heard" that there are some "truly" raw cashews on the market (available online at Sunfood.com) . Some people say that after soaking these raw cashews, they have been known to "sprout" (but I haven't done this myself). You'll notice on David's website that the two recipes he offers using cashews do not require soaking either.
Keep in mind that if you don't soak your cashews, you might need to increase the amount of water used in your recipes since the blended "unsoaked" cashews will absorb some of the water, making for a thick result.
Cheers,
Kristen
Kristen,
Which milks do you strain through a nut bag? I made hemp milk last week for the first time and strained it through a bag. Perhaps I didn't need to do this?
Thanks,
Jennifer
Hi JMS Robertson,
I rarely strain my milks... because I don't mind the texture. If I were making the milk for someone who had never had a raw vegan milk before, I'd probably strain almond (and possibly walnut, pecan).
Cheers,
Kristen
i will give hemp milk a go again with your green light. i've been making almond milk but the store was out of almonds! oh the horror.
btw, one of the things on my b-day book list is your hemp book. i even bought a big bag of hemp seeds just in case. :-) i get them from amazon too.
Thank Kristen! I love making hemp milk because I can make it last minute and avoid soaking. This recipe looks yummy. I'm off to make it:)
Mmmm hemp milk is my favorite!! Hubby thinks I'm crazy cuz it tastes so "earthy"-- hey, earthy is a good thing in my book! (I've gotten to the point where I don't really even add dates usually, do you?)
I make almond milk for him and hog the hemp to myself. I love the no-soaking aspect just as you mentioned! Have a good weekend :)
Hey Kristen
I love hemp milk too!!!!
I have some hemp seeds in my freezer- now I know what to do with them! :-)
Glad you all are excited about hemp! It's so awesome for your health! :)
Raw milk is so much better than real milk.........and soy milk is not good for you please dont believe the lies ; )
I am doing 50 days raw rate now and really liking making all these new things, if you have any tips or recipes I would love them thanks!
http://50daysraw.blogspot.com/
Can this be done in a regular blender or do I need a vitamix blender? thanks! I really want to try this out, hemp milk is pricey and I feel it very processed which I don't like.
I have not made it in a regular blender, but I'm confident you can. Hemp seeds are nice and soft-ish... Easy for blending.
Cheers,
Kristen
Thank you I will give it a try!
I made 1/2 of the recipe a few days ago, using 1 tsp agave, and added about 2 tsp vanilla and a dash of cinnamon. I also added 1 tsp chia to help keep it a little more homoginized (when it seperates it scares me a little). It was really good. This is the best nut/seed milk I've had. Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Hi Kristen!
I discovered your blog not long ago (while looking for a good prenatal), and we really are on the same wavelength! I think I'll spend a lot of time reading past entries :)
Go hemp! :)
Joanna.
Hi Joanna, Thanks for reading and commenting! Have a super day. :)
Cheers,
Kristen
I just managed to get hold of some hempseeds (they can only be sold as animal feed here in New Zealand, not for human consumption! silly I know.) and I've been making hempseed milk. The recipe I had called for about twice the amount of water, but it turns out pretty thin. So I'll give your recipe a try tomorrow. I was wondering though, why doesn't anyone seem to filter hempseed milk through a cloth, like they do with say, almond milk? I don't mind the gritty bits if I'm making a thick smoothie with bannana, but if I drink the milk straight the grit tends to go to the back of my throat and irritate it a bit.
Do you have a high speed blender and are you blending long enough (of course being careful not to make it hot)? Perhaps the high speed blenders make it creamier. However, it's all personal taste and texture. If you want to strain, then by all means... strain. :)
Hemp milk is obtained from the commercial hemp plant. It is most eco-friendly option. It is good for children. It is rich in omega 3 and 6. It has many health benefits like it has inflammation reducing properties, it is useful for people with sun damaged skin, diabetic person, it maintains ideal blood sugar levels in the body etc.
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