Yes it’s a thing. I ran out of my cashews which seems most natural for a nut milk intuitively. But I did have some raw pumpkin seeds lying around that I decided to soak right before bed and then see what I would do with them later. I was hoping to make it into a milk for my morning bulletproof matcha latte. I googled and confirmed that this could be a delicious thing filled with bioavailable zinc, iron as well as being a natural anti- parasitic which comes in handy this time of the year! They are much more common than we all think. But that’s another blog post. Now back to the recipe, here’s how its done:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, preferably organic (use whatever amount you have available and would like- just make sure the ratio of seeds to water is 1:4 )
• 4 cups filtered water
• Dash of Himalayan, Real Salt, or fleur de sel
• 1 date, or alternative sweetener such as maple syrup, raw honey or coconut sugar/ nectar (or omit altogether)
• 1/2 tsp organic vanilla extract

1. Soak 1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds, preferably overnight for maximum breakdown of phytates which make seeds less digestible or nutrient dense. Soaking also creates the proper consistency to make the milk. This can be done for just a few hours if needed as well.

2. Rinse the pumpkin seeds with water.

3. Add two cups of fresh, filtered water to the seeds in a blender.

4. Add a date for sweetness. 1-2 tsp maple syrup or raw honey may also be substituted.

5. Add 1/2 tsp vanilla, preferable organic and gluten free of course.

6. Add a dash of Himalayan salt. This helps for flavor as well as electrolyte balance. High quality salt intake is especially important to have in the morning for those with adrenal fatigue (which is pretty much all of us) so I make sure I either have something savory in the morning, or if not, I add a tiny pinch of salt to my water, beverage or food, to taste. Salt is not bad, salt is necessary for life and we crave it for a reason! It’s the fake, processed, unfit for human- consumption iodized salt that is the problem, which is not properly recognized by the body and scratches arteries, increasing hypertension due to refinement making it void of minerals. Salt should always have some kind of color, that indicates minerals! I know it may seem odd, but this small change to your routine can have immense benefits. Give it a try!

7. Blend in your handy dandy blender. I use a Ninja,  Vitamix is the best brand I know of. It’s not necessary to spend a ton of cash on a blender, though. Extra points if you get one made of glass rather than plastic!

8. Strain out seedy pulp, if you wish/ need to. Do so using a cheesecloth, sieve or nut milk bag. This can also be done using an organic paper towel or kitchen towel (that’s not been washed using some toxic detergent– if you need a nontoxic detergent that is highly concentrated you can find one here.)

9. Enjoy and pat yourself on the back for being self- sufficient and not giving in to the questionable chemical solutions sold to us in cartons in stores as “nut milks”. Fun fact, the vast majority of prepackaged versions of almond milk sold in stores were found to have an average of only 2% almonds (R). I think you deserve better!

I hope you enjoy this recipe. 🙂