There is something so exciting about things that taste like dessert but are actually great for your body. This Vegan Chocolate Almond Milk is just that! It is so simple to make- seriously, it involves three ingredients, one of which is water- and helps support heart health. You can’t get better than that!
I recently had the chance to take a ‘heart healthy’ tour of a Sprouts Farmer’s Market store with a registered dietitian, Suzanne Farrell, who showed us a plethora of tasty ways to get some extra heart-supporting nutrients into our bodies. One of my favorite parts of the tour was a taste test of six of Sprouts’ different bulk almond flavors. Not only do they have the raw almonds that I use to make almond milk, they had sweet, salty, and even umami flavors! So much fun!
Almonds themselves are a powerfully potent food. Chock full of Vitamin E, good unsaturated fats, Manganese, and antioxidants, they are widely touted for their positive effects on lowering cholesterol! Add a bit of flavonoid and anti-oxidant rich dark chocolate to the mix and you have a tasty drink that will make your tastebuds sing and your heart happy.
DIY Vegan Chocolate Almond Milk
Now this recipe is based off of my DIY Simple Nut Milk recipe– so if you need a more in depth explanation of any of the steps- pop over to that post!
Ingredients:
1 Cup Almonds
1 Jar plus 4 Cups Filtered Water
1/2 of Your Favorite Dark Chocolate Bar
Straining Materials:
Nut Milk Bag or Cheese Cloth (I use these nut milk bags)
Vegan Chocolate Almond Milk Instructions:
1. In a large glass container (I like quart mason jars!) add your almonds and enough water to cover the nuts plus an inch or so above. Leave to soak for a few hours or for best results, overnight.
2. After your almonds soak, rinse them well. At this point I like to remove the almonds’ skins, but if you don’t mine a grittier milk you can leave them! If you do decide to remove the skins, they should pop right off when you pinch the almonds- I add the discarded skins to my compost bin.
3. Add almonds and four cups of filtered water to a high speed blender and pulse until almonds are completely pulverized.
4. Cover a large jar with your nut milk bag or cheese cloth and pour almond mixture through to remove any grit. TIP: I used to use cheese cloth every time I made almond milk, but I am completely obsessed with these nut milk bags! They make cleanup so much easier- they have a finer sifter, and they retain all of the almond particles to you can use the pulp to make crackers!
5. Allow almond milk to sit so the bubbles subside.
6. Meanwhile, in a double boiler or a heat-safe bowl over a sauce pan, melt your chocolate over medium heat.
7. When chocolate is melted pour about a 1/4 cup of your almond milk into the chocolate. We are making a chocolate syrup here, so that when the chocolate cools it won’t ball up and not separate from the rest of your milk.
8. Mix well, and take the milk-chocolate off of the heat and allow to cool.
9. Pour the chocolate syrup into your jar of almond milk and shake well.
10 Voila! Chocolate almond milk!
This Vegan Chocolate Almond Milk should stay good for 4-5 days in your refrigerator (though I highly doubt it will last that long outside of your belly!) You can use it in the place of milk in so many different ways- I actually added some in lieu of my regular almond milk in my breakfast smoothie! Healthy AND decadent!
I was compensated with product and payment for this post. Some links are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.
[…] Looking for more nut milk? Check out my Simple Nut Milk or Vegan Chocolate Almond Milk! […]