Goodbye cow’s milk? Why? Let’s put it this way.
Coffee with milk is delicious. But cow’s milk – at least if it’s not organic or Demeter-certified – is problematic. Especially if you consider the conditions of industrial livestock production and factory farming. So we’ve looked around for a tasty alternative – and found oat milk. It can be used for cooking, baking and for making sublime-tasting coffee creations like café au lait, cappuccino and latte macchiato. Compared to soy and almond milk, it has a more neutral, mildly cereal-like taste, and is downright delicious.
And: the environmental impact of oat milk is significantly lower. Oats (usually) come from Germany, are available in organic and don’t need so much water in the preparation process. What’s more, no rainforest clearance is needed for their cultivation (unlike soybeans, for instance). But because packaging for ready-made drinks produces quite a lot of waste, we’ve got a recipe for DIY oat milk for you to make at home. The only equipment you need (apart from the ingredients, of course) is a decent food mixer or immersion blender and a cheesecloth (or nut milk bag). And now you’re ready to go:
RECIPE:
Blend all ingredients in the mixer at the highest setting for max. 30 seconds. Never more – otherwise it’ll go slimy.
Place the cheesecloth or nut milk bag in a bowl and pour in the mixture. Then tightly press, squeeze and twist the cloth or bag until all of the liquid is in the bowl. You can compost the leftover pulp or even use it as a “filler” in cooking or baking.
Store the milk in a reusable bottle (don’t forget to sterilize first!). Your oat milk should keep in the refrigerator for approx. five days.
photo:
christiann koepke on unsplash
photo: christiann koepke on unsplash
PS. You can also sew your own nut bag. You’ll find instructions online. Choose thin cotton or linen (like an old shirt, for instance) which you can wash out again afterwards.
