Creamy Homemade Almond Milk

introduction
Surprisingly creamy and sweet with the delicate flavor of almond extract (if your almonds are fresh), almond milk is many good things, but it is not dairy—and for many of us, that’s endorsement enough. The difference between almond milk in a carton and this almond milk is beyond striking: it is nigh on a revelation.
Cooking Remarks
You can kill yourself lining a strainer with cheesecloth, but it will probably slip down and screw up the works anyway. Or, you can just buy a nut milk bag and stop cursing.
equipment mise en place
For this recipe, you will need a colander or large fine-mesh strainer, a medium bowl, a blender, a nylon nut-milk bag, and a deep bowl.
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9ounces (2 cups) whole raw skin-on almonds
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¼teaspoon fine sea salt
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32ounces (4 cups) warm spring or filtered water, plus additional to soak the almonds
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Turn the almonds into a colander or large fine-mesh strainer. Rinse well under cool running water and transfer to a medium bowl. Add the salt and cover with 2 inches of warm spring or filtered water; a few almonds may float to the surface. Let cool to room temperature, and then refrigerate for at least 8 hours or overnight. The almonds will plump up (fig. 1.1).
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Drain the almonds in the colander or strainer and shake well to remove excess water. Turn them into a blender jar and add the 32 ounces (4 cups) of warm spring or filtered water (if your blender is small, work in two batches). Purée on high until completely smooth and only tiny flecks of skin are visible (fig. 2.1); this may take up to a minute, depending on your blender.
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Set the colander or large fine-mesh strainer into or over a deep bowl and place a nylon nut-milk bag inside; open the bag. Pour the purée into the bag (fig. 3.1). Lift the bag and pull the drawstring, and then squeeze the milk into the bowl (once you have poured the purée into the bag you can simply remove the colander or strainer), wringing the bag until the nut pulp is dry (fig. 3.2). Cover the milk and refrigerate. It will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
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1.1
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2.1
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3.1
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3.2
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Step photography by Kathy Rose