Saturday, September 02, 2006

Cashew Milk

It's delicious. I have no ulterior motive for that claim. The International Nut and Dried Fruit Council does not count me on their payroll. They should, however, incorporate this recipe into their website. It could have a positive effect on their revenues.

Thank you, Melinda,1 for the recipe.


Ingredients

1 cup (137g) roasted cashews2
4 cups water
Salt, about 1/4 tsp. or to taste (if not using salted cashews)

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1   Soak cashews in water "at least 8 hours or overnight."

Floating Cashews

2   "Whip it all up in a blender [including salt/vanilla/honey/etc.] till it's as smooth as it's gonna get. That's it! You can strain out tiny chunks of nut left after blending, or leave them in if you don't mind them (they're a little weird in tea, but fine on cereal)."

Note: Melinda recommends shaking well before using. I'm sure she means the milk. She also suggests freezing some if you don't intend to use it soon.

Ruby adds that some vanilla and a bit of honey can round out the flavor, "it's GOOD."

My actual soak time was about 20 hours: 17 hours in the refrigerator overnight and 3 hours out on the counter to let it return to room temperature (so it would blend better).

Since this was my first time making it, I was not in the position of being able to anticipate the palatability of cashew-infused water. So, just in case it wasn't a goer, I cut the recipe in half (1/2 cup cashews to 2 cups water). The final taste and consistency were exceptional. I predict repeat performances.

A nutritional analysis:


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1 Quoted text ascribed to Melinda unless noted.
2 I used the cashews from this post. Since they were raw, I roasted them in a 280ºF oven for about 30 minutes (or until golden) before soaking.

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