Milk Substitutes: Walnut Milk

I never understood vegetarians. Compared to meat, milk certainly contributes just as much to the deaths of animals and it's arguably less healthy. I'll drink it if I know the source, but most of the time I avoid it, especially since there aren't many local sources for it around here and bad milk tastes so terrible that it isn't even worth it.

Unfortunately, the substitutes aren't much better. Soy milk is an industrial heavily-processed food and soy itself has some issues₁. Rice milk seems to need a lot of sugar to taste acceptable and commercial nut milks tend to contain additives.

So I usually make my own nut milks. Use of nuts for milks dates back at least as far as the middle ages and can be made with simple whole ingredients.

Almond is the most popular nut milk, but I prefer using walnuts because their omega-3:omega-6 ratio is more balanced. There are many ways to make nut milks, but what I do is soak the walnuts for a day to remove the bitter tannins, rinse, and then blend with water with a 1:4 walnut to water ratio. Then I strain through cheesecloth. The remaining pulp can be used in raw vegan recipes. I usually flavor the milk itself with a bit of vanilla and local honey.

It lasts for a few days and certainly tastes a lot better than soy milk or industrial cow's milk, especially when used to make chai or hot chocolate.

_{1. I do eat fermented soy like miso occasionally, since it definitely has some benefits and fermenting removes most toxins}