two-for-one recipes :: almond milk and almost-raw snowballs

Almost-Raw Almond Snowballs

My parents were raised during the Great Depression. So when I was growing up, waste was not an option. My parents knew how to stretch a dollar. We "got what we got and were lucky to get it."

By osmosis, I inherited that frugal mindset. Case in point, last week, when I made almond milk and was left with a mass of strained almond pulp. I could have tossed it, but I decided to use it to make Almost-Raw Snowballs – not that we need more snow. But there's something defiantly empowering about eating a snowball. It's like giving this brutal winter the finger.

Two-for-the-price-of-one! I hope you enjoy these easy vegan recipes.

Homemade Almond Milk – so easy!

Almond Milk

• 3 cups filtered water
• 1 cup raw almonds, soaked for at least 3 hours or overnight
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Sweetener of your choice, to taste [eg, agave nectar, maple syrup, stevia] Optional

Makes about 4 cups

Whiz everything in a blender, preferably a high-speed blender like a Vitamix.  Strain. Use reserved pulp in snowball recipe, or set out to dry and use as almond meal in baking.

I used a muffin tin to keep my Almost Raw Almond Snowballs neat.

Almost-Raw Almond Snowballs

• About 1 cup soaked almond meal, leftover from almond milk recipe
• 2 T of Raw Cacao Powder or cocoa powder
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1 T coconut oil
• 3 T Organic Raw Agave Nectar or or maple syrup
• Pinch sea salt
• 2 T brown rice flour
• About 1/2 cup unsweetened flaked coconut

Makes 18-24 snowballs

Using your hands, mix everything except coconut flakes in a large bowl. Spread coconut flakes on a dish.

Roll mixture into balls – about 3/4-1 inch in diameter. Mixture should be somewhat firm – so you may need to add extra brown rice flour .Roll in coconut and place on a cookie sheet. If you want to get fancy, place them in mini muffin liners. [I'm a sucker for cute liners – not frugal!] Refrigerate for a few hours until firm,