Creamy and packed with crunchy roasted hazelnuts, this milk tastes incredibly indulgent.

Now that we are celebrating birthdays and other events pretty much every weekend I wanted something simple, quick and satisfying. While I do enjoy making cakes and other desserts for my family, it is a little difficult to keep up with all the events. From birthdays, to baby showers to father’s day, this month is exceptionally busy. So I wanted to make a simple and delicious recipe in between hectic events.

Hazelnut milk is easy to make and a great alternative to regular milk. I’m not a vegan, but I do enjoy the creamy delicious taste of it. There are a few tips I’d like to share with you on how to make the perfect hazlenut milk.

Tips

1). Roast the nuts to make them crunchy and delicious, this adds so much extra flavor rather than just soaking them

2). Remove the skins after roasting so the milk doesn’t taste bitter in any way

3). I don’t strain the milk. I love the creamy taste of unstrained nut milk plus you will get the most nutritional value from it.

If you are however watching your calorie intake or are on a diet, you can of course strain it to reduce the calories.

Uses

There are many uses for hazelnut milk. You can basically sub it almost anywhere for regular milk and it gives everything a rich hazelnut flavor. Try it in: oatmeal, cocoa, cereal, smoothies,.. and my personal favorite: make healthy hazelnut coffee by using it as a creamer. Get creative with it and let me know if you make it and where you used it in. 🙂

Roasted Hazelnut Milk

Creamy and nutritious, this roasted hazelnut milk makes a healthy treat.

Yield: 1 liter (unstrained)

Ingredients

300g hazelnuts, raw (2 cups)
960ml water (4 cups)
1 vanilla bean
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons maple syrup (or sweetener of your choice)

Instructions

Roast hazelnuts for about 15min at 180°C or 350°F. Keep a close eye on them as they burn quickly. Let them cool.
To remove the skins, rub them between your hands or in a dish towel. Skins should come off easily.
Combine the water, hazelnuts, seeds of the vanilla bean, salt and maple syrup in a blender and blend until nuts are pulverized. (The time will vary depending on how strong your blender is)
Optional: If you wish to strain, pour milk into a cheese cloth and squeeze out all the liquid into a bowl underneath. Or simply drink it as whole milk (it will be creamier this way)