When it comes to a waste free life, dairy products seem to throw up the most hurdles. If you’re looking to reduce your intake of dairy products and find an alternative to milk which is normally packaged in plastic PET bottles or plastic lined cardboard cartons, you’ve likely tried every nut milk under the sun!
Nut milks can be produced without plastic by buying in your own container from a bulk foods store, or minimal plastic by purchasing nuts in bulk lots. The most popular nut milk by far seems to be almond milk, but as I’ve been battling with IBS for the last 10 years, it’s not suitable for me at all – although the home-made version tastes far better than anything I’ve encountered in the store. Here are all the types of milk alternatives you could try:
Almond Milk
Oat Milk
Macadamia Milk
Cashew Milk
Hazelnut Milk
All have their pros and cons which are really dependant on personal taste and opinion, as well as what you are going to use the milk for. For instance, if you are going to make:
Coffee – almond or macadamia milk are the go
On Cereal or in smoothies – Oat, Cashew, Hazelnut and Macadamia milk are tasty
In cooking – anything will act in the same way as milk but some may separate if you’re boiling the milk.
I found oat milk was the cheapest option, but you had to be prepared to make it regularly as it gets slimy if you leave it too long. Almond milk was quite nice, but you need to have a way to use up the leftover almond pulp regularly (and there are lots of recipes out there to do that!) and was not suitable for anyone with a sensitive stomach like mine (no I don’t know why as Almonds are technically low fodmap).
One benefit of all this experimentation has been happening on the most delicious option of all – Cashew Hemp & Date Milk!
This Cashew Hemp Date milk is delicious and is the only milk I’ve found which I’m happy to drink by itself with a bit of ice, or blended into a smoothie, over cereal or in an iced coffee. I’m afraid it’s not good in hot coffee (at least in my experience), but I have not found any of the other alternatives that great either (although Macadamia Milk had to be the best option).
You do need to be a bit organised to keep a perpetual supply up. To make Cashew milk you need to soak cashews in water over night. Drain the water in the morning and add the cashews plus 3 cups of water, 2 medjool dates and some hemp seeds to a blender (preferably high speed). Blend until no chunks remain. The beauty of this Cashew Hemp Date Milk is that you don’t need to strain it and there is no pulp to reuse – you literally drink the cashews. I’ve found it will last a max of 4 days and after 3 days you will notice a tangier taste. If you’re going to be using it in smoothies you can freeze it in ice-cube trays for later use.
Let me know if you try this and if you enjoyed it as much as I do!
Ingredients
- ½ - 1 cup cashews
- 2 tablespoons hemp seeds
- 2 medjool dates
- 3-4 cups of fresh water
