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Almond milk cocktails with chocolate, vanilla or strawberry filling are often found on store counters. However, almond milk is not only a delicious dessert, but also nutritious. Almond milk is widely used in the preparation of cosmetic and medical preparations, in cooking, in diet and breastfeeding. It is not necessary to buy a store product; it will not be difficult to cook it at home.
Health Benefits of Almond Milk
Few people know that almond juice, which is known as almond milk due to its similar color with milk, is a natural substitute for cow's milk. The advantage of almond milk is that, unlike an animal product, almond milk does not contain lactose, which causes allergies in many people. Because of this, they cannot accept milk, which contains substances necessary to support certain processes in the body.
The use of almond milk is widely used in medicine and cosmetology. Milk contains:
- proteins - 18.6 g;
- carbohydrates - 13 g;
- fats - 53.7 g;
- vitamins E, D, B, A;
- calcium;
- phosphorus;
- magnesium;
- manganese;
- zinc;
- copper;
- sulfur.
Unlike cow's milk, which contains 62 kcal per 100 g, or goat's milk with 69 kcal per 100 g, almond milk is not very high in calories. 100 ml of almond milk contains 51 kcal, most of which are natural fats and carbohydrates. That is why it is given to children suffering from weak weight gain in infancy or at a time when a nursing mother cannot feed on her own. Also, due to the increased natural fat content, milk from almonds is given to children and pregnant women suffering from constipation.
Due to the absence of animal fats in the product, almond milk is considered dietary, used for weight loss and to reduce blood cholesterol. Due to the presence of phosphorus and calcium, almond juice is able to restore damaged bones and strengthen them during the period of senile osteoporosis and childhood rickets.
Ingredients
To purchase nut milk, you do not have to go to a store where the milk contains dyes, preservatives and other unknown ingredients that irritate the stomach and are harmful to pregnant women, children and the elderly. All you need to make milk from almonds at home is the nuts themselves and drinking water.
The finished product itself does not have a rich taste. Almond milk is rather tasteless, so factory manufacturers add flavoring fillers to it so that mothers will more willingly buy it for children. You can cook porridge with natural almond milk, add it to coffee, cocktails. But in order to drink it for health purposes, it is permissible to mix it with additives such as:
- cinnamon;
- ginger;
- vanilla;
- cocoa;
- honey;
- sugar;
- turmeric;
- cardamom;
- pepper;
- nutmeg;
- coffee;
- fruit syrups.
When choosing additional ingredients, their compatibility should be considered. You can experiment with blended berries and fruits mixed with nut juice.
How to make milk
Making almond milk at home will take 4 to 8 hours. The secret is to soften the nuts that contain the desired ingredient and take it out.The recipe is simple:
- First, prepare the nuts themselves. They should be raw, not toasted.
- In order for the nut to become pliable for grinding, it must be softened. To do this, mix the nuts with water 1: 3, that is, 1 glass of nuts to 3 glasses of water. Pour the nuts into a deep container and leave them wet overnight or at least 4 hours.
- When the nut swells and becomes soft, drain the water and begin to beat the product with a blender until smooth. The longer you beat the nut, the less pulp will remain.
- The whipped nut should be strained through cheesecloth.
- Mix the resulting mass with drinking water in a ratio of 1: 3 or 1: 4 and add flavorings as desired.
The remaining pulp from the nut can be used for cosmetic purposes, for example, to wipe the face. The product moisturizes the skin, supplying healthy fats that protect the epithelium from drying out. Cookies are also baked from the pulp.
Application of almond milk
Almond milk is a multifunctional product from which a variety of culinary dishes are prepared, on a par with ordinary milk. Its plus is that the ground almonds do not have their own taste, therefore, they do not change the taste of the main ingredients. Various dishes are also made from the remaining pulp.
Almond milk is popular in cosmetics and skin and hair care products. In official and folk medicine, almond milk is also in demand. Almond oil is used to make remedies for coughs, migraines, and anemia.
In cooking
Almond milk itself is used as a substitute for regular milk. It is added to the dough, porridge and vegetables are cooked on it, smoothies and cocktails are whipped. Almond juice is a great addition to desserts. And if you freeze it in ice cube trays, the cubes can be added to coffee. There are two simple milk recipes worth considering.
Chocolate paste with hazelnuts
The dish is for 4 servings and will take 25 minutes to cook. Contains 867 calories per serving.
Ingredients:
- 300 g of dark chocolate in bars or confectionery;
- 150 g hazelnuts;
- 80 g butter;
- 100 ml of cow's milk;
- 100 ml of almond milk.
Cooking method:
- Separate the pre-dried hazelnuts from the husks and beat with a blender until they become powder.
- Mix both types of milk, butter and chocolate broken into pieces, beat everything until smooth.
- Add hazelnuts, stir.
The pasta is ready, you can spread it on bread or add it as a filling to cakes, cookies and croissants. Store in a jar in the refrigerator. You can use walnuts instead of hazelnuts.
Thick raspberry smoothie
The recipe describes the preparation of one serving, that is, one glass of smoothie. This nutritious dessert drink is dietary and suitable for consumption in the morning. It contains 1043 kcal. It consists mainly of vegetable carbohydrates.
Ingredients:
- 75 g raspberries, fresh or frozen;
- 1 banana;
- 50 g almond milk;
- 1 teaspoon of liquid honey;
- half a teaspoon of lemon juice.
Cooking method:
- Rub the raspberries through a sieve, set aside.
- Cut the banana into slices and let stand in the freezer for 20 minutes.
- Mix all the ingredients in one bowl and beat with a blender until smooth.
Drink chilled, but not frozen. Garnish the light pink smoothie with a mint leaf or whole raspberries. If the drink seems too sweet, you can add more lemon juice or lime.
In folk medicine
Almond milk is not used in folk medicine, recipes are prepared only from a whole nut. But if there is a certain amount of this vitamin-rich product in its raw form, then part of it can be used to make milk from almonds, and the other part can be used to make medicines.
Where can you use almond nuts:
- Raw bitter almonds break down alcohol. If you need to stay sober in a company drinking alcohol, then you need to swallow 5 pieces of kernels, which will reduce the effect of intoxication.
- If tachycardia suffers and there is no appetite, you can eat a sugar cube dipped in nut oil.To do this, you need to ceiling it so that it begins to secrete an oily liquid, and add sugar there.
- For constipation, it is recommended to eat almonds due to the presence of a large amount of vegetable fat in them. For the same purpose, nursing mothers use nut products if the baby is constipated.
The nuclei cleanse the liver well. When diagnosed with jaundice, you should eat 5-8 pieces 2 times a day for three days to promote a quick recovery.
In cosmetology
Almond milk is also used for topical use. The product has a moisturizing and softening effect on the skin. Milk is used as a tonic for the body and scalp. Also, the composition serves as one of the ingredients for making homemade soaps and creams. Face masks are made from the remaining pulp, and if you add ground walnut peel to the composition, you get a natural body scrub that polishes the top layer of the skin.
- To prepare a hair mask, you need to grate the almond nuts to the state of porridge, then mix with milk until the state of sour cream. Once every 2 days, apply the mask to the scalp for 30 minutes, wrapping with cellophane and a towel on top. This recipe is designed to heal the hair follicles.
- In the Middle Ages, the Armenian physician Amirdovlat Amasiatsi discovered that if you mix ground bitter almonds with red wine and rub your head with this remedy, you can get rid of dandruff.
- Bitter almond root is used to make a whitening agent for skin, freckles, sunburn and bruising.
Almond husks can come in handy as an ingredient in a tincture to cleanse your face. To do this, mix 2 tablespoons of husk with 3 cups of boiling water and leave for 4 hours. Wipe the skin of the face with filtered infusion.
Calorie content
The nutritional value of almond milk includes only 51 kcal per 100 g of juice with water. Its name is milk based only on the similarity with a natural animal product. But in essence, it is nut juice with water, which cannot replace milk. You can adjust its concentration by diluting the product with water 1: 2, 1: 3 or 1: 4, increasing the calorie content and nutritional value, as well as similarity to real milk in consistency.
The prepared mixture is considered a light, dietary product, suitable as the main ingredient of meals allowed during the period of weight loss. A person cannot eat a lot, but you need to take useful substances from somewhere so as not to have problems with teeth and hair. In this case, a low-calorie plant substitute is the best option.
Contraindications
Like any other product, almond milk has contraindications and side effects. It should not be taken by people with nut allergies and allergic dermatitis. It should also be borne in mind that excessive consumption of any nut affects body weight gain. People prone to obesity should eat almonds and almonds with caution, in small doses.
People with cardiovascular disease may experience a side effect of consuming almonds due to the essential oil in the product. If a person has such a diagnosis, then even for cosmetic purposes, the nuclei are contraindicated for him.
The almond tree fruit stimulates the nervous system. Therefore, it cannot be eaten at night so that there are no problems with sleep. This also applies to people suffering from neuralgia, headaches. The daily intake of nuclei in food should not exceed 20 pieces.
Terms and conditions of storage
Almond milk is distinguished by its stability during storage. It can be kept out of the refrigerator for up to two weeks at room temperature.This is due to the fact that there are no biologically active bacteria in the almond product that provoke fermentation and are contained in ordinary milk. In the refrigerator at a positive temperature (from 0 to 20 degrees), almond milk will last 12 months.
It is better to store the mixture in glass containers than in plastic. But if there is nothing but a plastic bottle, before pouring milk into it, it should be well washed and dried.
Conclusion
The varied uses of a product such as almond milk make nut kernels a sought-after commodity in a variety of applications. You don't need to be a scientist and a doctor to find the use of this gift of nature in home cosmetology and cooking.
