Almond Milk and Almond Hummus Recipe

I'm a huge proponent of anything homemade. I mean, (to steal a quote from Brandon) the Giant Eagle's and Whole Foods of the world didn't exist more than a generation or two ago...people have been thriving on all things homemade for centuries! If they were suddenly gone...what would we do?! I'd make homemade almond milk and homemade hummus, that's what I would do! 

In all seriousness though, I love making things myself because I can control what goes into them. I won't be putting any chemicals, preservatives or other ingredients unpronounceable names into my food! 

Ingredients in a Twinkie (source)

Homemade almond milk and almond hummus are two things that Brandon and I discovered when we did our change-of-seasons, week-long raw foods cleanse (something I want to do again when we transition into the spring again...maybe for two weeks this time???).  I can't begin to explain what an incredible learning experience that week was for us.It was a different way to get to know your bodies, that's for sure. With a little planning, it's definitely a diet that I could sustain for longer than a week. Part of the goal of eating only raw foods was to explore new ways to prepare and eat the foods that we already eat regularly, which is why I still make almond milk just about every week...and almond hummus (using the leftover almond meal from the almond milk) is our new favorite type of hummus. Best of all, you can adjust the texture, flavor and spicyness from here til Sunday. 

Homemade almond milk and almond hummus = love.

How to make almond milk:

1. Soak about 1 cup of almonds 4-8 hours or overnight. I usually do just over one cup.
2. Drain and rinse your almonds then place them in a blender, food processor, magic bullet...anything you use to grind/puree/whip/liquefy.
3. Cover almonds with water and blend them until they turn into liquid-y ground almonds, then add more water and blend for another minute or so. (The flavor of your almond milk depends on your ratio of almonds to water, I normally do just over 1 cup of almonds to three and a half or four cups of water - it's all up to you!)
4. Strain your milk using a sprout bag, cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer into a bowl, or anything that will hold the amount of liquid that you are straining. 
5. Voila! Almond milk! It keeps for 3-5 days in the fridge...I've actually experienced some separation between the water and the nut oil after it sitting in the fridge for a while, just give it a shake and you'll remedy that!

...now, what do you do with all that leftover almond meal??? You make almond hummus!!

Raw Almond Hummus Recipe

adapted from The Raw Food Coach

Ingredients:

~1cup almond meal (leftover from almond milk!)

1/2 cup tahini

1 large garlic clove (I generally use several-love me some garlic)

juice of 2 large lemons

sea salt, pepper, parsley and basil to taste

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients into a blender or food processor, blendy until you've achieved a smooth (hummus-y) consistency. You will probably have to add some water to get everything moving.
2. Taste test: you might want to add more salt, pepper, herbs, etc. Here's where you can go nuts! I've been known to add a jalapeno or crushed red pepper flakes for some spice. I've also included roasted red peppers once or twice. Maybe some pinenuts??? Get creative!!

What are your favorite homemade things? Is there something you've been dying to try to recreate at home? I'd love more homemade ideas! Please leave me a comment or email me, peaclovebagels [at] gmail [dot] com.