How to Make Almond Milk
January 31, 2025If you’ve ever looked at the ingredients in store-bought almond milk, you might have noticed some unexpected extras—preservatives, thickeners, and sometimes even added sugar. The good news? Making your own almond milk at home is incredibly easy and budget-friendly.In this guide, I’ll show you exactly how to make homemade almond milk.Whether you want a plain, unsweetened version or something flavored with vanilla or a touch of sweetness, I’ve got you covered. Let’s get started!
Equipment
- Bowl with lid or cover
- high speed blender
- Fabric to strain with (large thin tea towel, cheesecloth, or a legit nut milk bag)
- 4 cup liquid measuring cup (could also use a large bowl)
- Mesh strainer/colander
- Airtight quart sized container
Ingredients
- 1 cup almonds raw, unsalted
- tap water
- 4 cups filtered water you'll add 2 cups to the blender and 2 cups later
Optional Add-ins
- ½ - 1 TBS maple syrup or honey
- 1 - 2 softened pitted dates
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ¼ tsp almond extract
Instructions
- Put the almonds in a bowl and cover them with tap water that goes above the almonds by at least an inch. Cover the bowl and let the almonds soak overnight (or at least 8 hours) on the counter. If you're short on time, you can do a quick soak by covering them with boiling water and letting them sit for about 1 hour.1 cup almonds, tap water
- After soaking, pour the almonds into a mesh strainer/colander and rinse them thoroughly under running water.
- Add the soaked almonds to a blender along with 2 cups of the filtered water (we'll add the other 2 cups of filtered water later). If you want to sweeten your almond milk with dates, add 1 or 2 soft dates* to the blender as well. Blend on high for about 1-2 minutes until smooth and creamy.4 cups filtered water
- Set a mesh strainer/colander over a 4 cup liquid measuring cup or large bowl, place a thin tea towel, cheesecloth, or nut milk bag in the strainer, then pour the blended mixture through.(Straining the milk into a large measuring cup makes it easier to pour the milk into a quart sized container later. You could also use a large bowl and transfer the milk using a ladle.)
- Gather up the towel, cheesecloth, or nut milk bag around the almond pulp, and squeeze out as much liquid as possible. You'll want to really squeeze hard, rotating the almond pulp every squeeze or so to evenly get out all the milk. You should end up with about 2 cups of concentrated almond milk.
- Add the remaining 2 cups of filtered water to the almond milk.
- If you didn't blend in any dates earlier and you want to sweeten your almond milk, you can stir in ½ - 1 TBS of honey or maple syrup at this point. You could also add 1 tsp of vanilla or 1/4 tsp of almond extract. Stir well.
- Pour the almond milk into a quart sized airtight container. Close the lid and shake well.
- Refrigerate for up to a week. Shake well before using, as natural separation may occur.
Notes
*To soften dates: Soak the pitted dates in hot water for 5 - 10 minutes to soften them and make them easier to blend up.