This Vanilla Almond Milk is naturally sweetened, and can be used to make chia pudding, or added to cereal or steel cut oats, for a healthier breakfast. All you need is 3 ingredients and a few minutes to make it!
What is Vanilla Almond Milk?
Similar to Chocolate Almond Milk, vanilla almond milk is lightly sweetened and flavored with vanilla. This flavor is commonly sold at grocery stores, but it’s super-easy to make at home, without any extra preservatives or thickeners.
This recipe is based on my original almond milk recipe, but embellished with extra flavor!
How to Make it
All you need is 3 ingredients to make this flavored almond milk:
- Almonds
- Dates (or maple syrup)
- Vanilla extract
You’ll blend the almonds with water, then strain out the almond pulp, leaving behind a silky-smooth almond milk.
Straining out the almonds first keeps the almond pulp neutral in flavor, and easy to work with, so you can save it to make my favorite Almond Pulp Hummus as a healthy snack later.
Then you’ll just pour the strained almond milk back into the blender, add in the dates and vanilla, and blend again until smooth.
You don’t have to strain the milk again if you have a blender that is powerful enough to break down the dates. I prefer not to strain it a second time, so that the milk retains the fiber from the dates, and helps thicken it slightly.
How to Adjust the Flavor
When you make your own vanilla almond milk, you get to control the flavor. Free free to start with less dates if you don’t want a sweet milk. You can always add more, to your taste, if needed. If you don’t want a strong vanilla flavor, you can use less of that, too. I always like to taste as I go, to make sure it turns out perfectly every time.
If you end up with a milk that tastes too sweet, you can always add more water to dilute it, or a pinch of salt to help balance the flavor.
Is Almond Milk Good for You?
Almond milk doesn’t have the same protein content as cow’s milk, but it’s a great dairy-free free alternative for adding to smoothie recipes and serving over cereal. Almonds are also loaded with nutrients!
Benefits of Almonds:
- Almonds are a good source of vitamin E, which has been linked to lowering the risk of heart disease.
- They are also high in magnesium, which may help to lower blood sugar levels and may improve insulin sensitivity.
- Getting plenty of magnesium may also help with lowering blood pressure.
- Eating almonds regularly may help to lower “bad” LDL cholesterol levels.
Considering that cow’s milk may increase the risk of certain cancers and may also increase the risk for hip fractures, almond milk seems like a pretty satisfying alternative to me.
I hope you’ll enjoy it as much as my family does!
Vanilla Almond Milk
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw almonds , soaked for 6-8 hours
- 4 cups filtered water
- 4 Medjool dates , pitted (or 2-3 tablespoons maple syrup)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Drain and rinse the soaked almonds, then pour them into a high-powered blender with 4 cups of fresh water. Blend until creamy.
- Pour the blended milk into a nut milk bag, or fine mesh strainer. Squeeze well to make sure you extract all the liquid from the pulp. Save the almond pulp for another use, like making my Almond Pulp Hummus.
- Return the strained milk to the blender, then add the dates, vanilla, and sea salt. Blend until the dates are completely broken down. Taste and adjust any flavoring as needed, then transfer the milk to a storage container. You can serve the milk right away or chill in the fridge until ready to use.
- Homemade almond milk lasts roughly 4 days in the fridge before it can start to smell or taste "off" so only make what you will use in that time. You can freeze any leftover milk in ice cube trays to use in smoothies. Frozen milk should last for up to 3 months if you transfer the cubes into an airtight container.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is for 1 cup of milk, but doesn’t take into account that much of the almonds are strained out in this recipe– so use your best guess regarding that!
If you try this recipe, please leave a comment below letting me know how you like it. If you make any modifications, I’d love to hear about those, too! We can all benefit from your experience.
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Reader Feedback: What’s your favorite non-dairy milk? I have tutorials for making oat milk and hemp milk, too!
I’m so glad you possted this recipe. I just read your “what I ate” from yestrrday on my email and was hoping you would post this because it sounded so good. I cannot wait to make this!
It’s delicious! I hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Thank you! I will make this soon!
Homemade nut milks are the best! I used to make my own almond milk all the time and when I got a little tired of the flavor, I tried hazelnuts. Wow. It was amazing. You should try that one sometime, too! 🙂
Hazelnuts sound like a great idea! Of course, then I’d be tempted to add some cocoa, too, to make it Nutella flavored… 😉
OH MY this sounds so good! I love the idea of adding dates to it, that is totally new to me.
Thanks so much for another amazing post, you are AWESOME!
This looks so delicious…I usually drink the TJ’s vanilla unsweetened so this will be so much better! Yay!
I have major food waste neurosis though…I can’t throw away the pulp, I’ll feel guilty about it all day, same reason I can’t make juice…it’s leftover from when I was poor. Any ideas for what to do with it? Or do I just need to suck it up and compost it?
For the juice pulp, I’d try one of these recipes:
Meat(less) balls: https://detoxinista.com/2011/07/italian-meatless-balls/
Juice Pulp Burgers: https://detoxinista.com/2011/04/beet-this-burger/
Carrot Cake: https://detoxinista.com/2011/09/recipe-makeover-detox-carrot-cake/
For the almond pulp, I haven’t had much success myself. I haven’t had the patience to dry it in my dehydrator, and the wet stuff hasn’t created anything recipe-worthy in my kitchen. However, I think Gena has had some good ideas if you want to check them out:
http://www.choosingraw.com/3-creative-uses-for-almond-pulp-raw-bread-raw-zucchini-and-almond-hummus-and-raw-chocolate-protein-fluff/
http://www.choosingraw.com/vanilla-almond-sugar-cookies-another-creative-use-for-almond-milk-pulp/
Hope that helps! 🙂
Haven’t tried this recipe yet but I’m looking for a copycat of the Pressed Juicery version. This stuff is so addicting but at $5/bottle just isn’t cost friendly with a big family. Can’t wait to try but now I gotta wait for these almonds to soak 😫 thanks for posting.
As for the leftover pulp. Use them to make nut flour. If you have a Vitamix (which you need anyway for the milk), you can use your dry container. I don’t know exactly how to make it, but there’s YouTube videos showing how.
Thank you, thank you for adding Pinterest to your site! I read you every day and so enjoy your recipes. I look forward to “pinning” your posts to my boards and sharing them with friends so they can find your site and enjoy these healthy and delicious recipes too.
Have a wonderful day!
Oh my gosh that looks so good. I guess I’ll need to buy a nutmilk bag. And yeah, any ideas on what to do with the pulp?
Check out my comment above– I think there are a few good ideas in there. 😀
Thank you so, so, much for your wonderful and healthy recipes! I always look forwards to reading your blog posts!
I love making vanilla almond milk! I never add dates to mine though, I guess that’s what makes it a better actual milk drink alternative. For some reason I can’t drink any milk, not even almond milk, reminds me to much of the real stuff I guess hah
I am so excited to try making my own Almond milk! I just have to get through what I have packaged already, then I’m going to try this recipe!
Hey this sounds delish! Does it combine as nuts/seeds category? Not sure since regular almond milk is neutral. Thanks!
Yes, technically it does combine in the nut/seed category, since the dates aren’t strained out. However, since the pulp is so diluted in this recipe, it probably won’t impact digestion too much, as long as you don’t drink copious amounts at one time. 😉
Megan, super yummy, just the perfect amount of sweet. Thank you!
I just made my own homemade pecan/ almond butter! it tastes great, and its raw!
I know thats not related to almond milk, but I just thought I’d let you people know … its exiting to make organic, raw goodness from scratch! Plus almond milk and almond butter aren’t that far from eachother..one is just more watery! 😉
That recipe sounds delicious! But I was wondering what was the difference between mixing all the ingredients together and adding the dates and vanilla only after the milk is strained. Does it changes the flavor? Make it sweeter maybe?
I mixed the dates and vanilla afterward because I was trying to mimic the flavor and texture of the version available at Pressed Juicery. I think you could probably blend them all together before straining, and it would work just fine! Maybe the result would be slightly less sweet, from the straining of the dates, but I think it’s worth a shot!
Hi Megan
Can you please post the new copycat pressed Juicery matcha almond freeze? That is my most favorite but it doesn’t have one here’s in Phoenix! I daydream about that matcha almond freeze daily lol
I actually blended the dates before straining; the sweetness level was perfect for me, about halfway between unsweetened and sweetened storebought.
I like to drink my homemade almond milk warm. For a rich and creamier taste, you could bring the almond milk slowly to a boil on the stove or in microwave afterwards. It’s sort of like pasteurizing it (who knows what particles gets in there after all that straining and squeezing through the nut bag…)
Anyway, it almost tastes like hot chocolate. Delicious
I love warm almond milk, too! Yum. 🙂
I LOVE your website!! I was wondering how long this can last in refrigerator once made…if I make a large batch. Thank you!!
Mine usually lasts 4-5 days in the fridge– after that, you can tell that the taste changes!
I put my almond pulp in my dehydrator and it dries out the clumps and then I put it in my Blendtec and use it as almond flour!!! Works great and I love that I’m not wasting any! (I usually put my almond pulp in little Pampered Chef glass prep bowls and then into the freezer until I have about 1 or 2 cups of the pulp before I dehydrate it).
I really like this idea! I have a Vitamix at home so I think this will be easy. Thanks!
I blanch my almonds for a less than a minute in a tiny bit of water pop them out of their skins no need to strain. Homemade almond milk trumps that store bought stuff (which is good at times) any day.
I use a similar recipe (1.5 c nuts to 4 cups of water) with a variety of other nuts…. Brazil and walnut are delicious and nutritious.
Hazelnut is also good. I tried it with Sunflower Seeds not so good
Just made it. Delicious. Also added a dash of cinnamon. Fantastic.
Hi Megan –
I made your almond milk this morning after letting my almonds soak overnight and it is fantastic! I cannot believe how easy it is to make and it tastes great. I have a question for you. Does almond milk freeze well?
Great website and info… I can see you and I think alke on natural foods. I have moveed away from Almond Breeze Milk because of the controversy of the carageenan in it. I use almonds and my reverse osmosis water in my Nutri-Bullet. Quick and easy, no straining. I add cherry concentrate, organic shredded coconut, or almost any fruit to the mix, and delicious. I avoid any Dairy once I saw how the dairy milk is made and what happens to the cows and their baby calves.
Keep up the great job, Happy Holidays to you and all your family.
Hey Megan! I’m planning on trying this recipe this weekend but I’m wondering how long it’ll keep in the fridge?
Hi Megan!
I made this for the first time last week. I also made the coffee creamer. Let me tell you, I was going nuts trying to find a substitute for my morning cappuccino, since soy and dairy are a no go. It tastes so refreshing and delicious!!! Unfortunately, after the first day, I started having very bad stomach ache. I think it’s because of the dates. It is the only new food I introduced in my diet and I have never ate them before. Do you have a substitute to suggest? I don’t really like the maple syrup flavor. Help!
Anna
I’d like to make this! Any idea of the nutritional value of 1 cup of this vanilla almond milk? Thanks!
It is amazing!! How Can I be able to freeze it that is similar to Pressed Juicery vanilla almond freeze? How Can I transform from this vanilla almond juice to vegan ice cream? Thanks!
That’s some yummy almond milk! What do you do with remaining almond meal?
Thanks, Jess
hi did you leave the skin on when blending the water and almond? thank you ^^
Yes, I don’t peel the almonds.
Would love to see you make a coffee creamer! Something thicker maybe with coconut milk? Thanks!
I hate this recipe!
I found your site today while searching for nutrition info. I’ve been making this basic recipe for a few months now and absolutely love it? I usually make it with only a splash of vanilla extract but when I want it sweetened a touch I add about half of an eating spoon of our raw honey. Our girls create a dark, rich honey so it doesn’t take much. I’ve been thinking about trying almond extract instead of vanilla. I’m also about to start a making of vanilla extract using beans and vodka to use instead of buying it.
It’s amazing, I must start from day after tomorrow as the ingredients I have to buy and then to start. Thanks a lot for such a recipe for lowering my blood sugar level. If it’s true, then I will be grateful to you sir. Thanx once again