The Best Dairy Free ‘Milks’ + Recipes!

While I don’t believe dairy is necessarily bad for everyone, there is an increasing number of people with dairy intolerances and allergies out there, myself included.

Dairy can cause excess mucous production and inflammation in the body, which can cause some serious tummy issues, exacerbate skin conditions (such as acne, psoriasis) and make you prone to infections (ear, throat, and sinus infections).

In many ways, removing dairy from your diet can be difficult, especially if you grew up drinking milk and eating cheese and ice cream, but going dairy free is not as hard as you may think, especially where milk is concerned.

Head to any grocery store and you’ll see loads of options on the shelf, rice milk, oat milk, almond milk, coconut milk. So which is best and which brands to choose?

Personally, I steer away from grain-based milk, because they’re basically sugary starch in a container. I consider almond milk or other nut milk, coconut milk and tigernut milk to be the best options, both for in taste and nutrition value. Here’s the scoop on each:

ALMOND MILK:

So is all almond milk created equal? Not exactly. Unfortunately, most of the stuff found on the shelf is loaded with preservatives such as carrageenan, but more importantly contain very little almonds at all. So if you must buy the store bought variety once in a while, that’s cool, but please try making our own at least once! It’s actually easier than you might think and the taste is really not comparable to the store bought stuff.

ALMOND MILK RECIPE

Ingredients:

  •   1 cup of Almonds
  •   1 tsp vanilla extract
  •   pinch of sea salt (plus ½ tsp for soaking)
  •   4 cups of water ( + 2 more for soaking)

Place almonds,  2 cups of filtered water and a dash of sea salt in a medium bowl. Soak overnight to remove anti-nutrients.

Drain and rinse.

Place almonds, 4 cups of water, vanilla and sea salt in a blender. Blend for about 5 min minute, or until milky consistency. Strain milk through a nut milk bag or cheesecloth.

Voila, fresh almond milk! Lasts for up to 7 days.

Save the pulp to make healthy muffins!

PS – this recipe can also be used to make cashew milk! Yum!

COCONUT MILK:

Coconut milk is my personal favourite milk alternative. While there are many coconut milk brands out there, I think that most of the ‘pourable’ variety is terrible, so I go the canned or powdered coconut milk route. It’s so much creamier and delicious!

COCONUT MILK / CREAMER RECIPE:

Ingredients:

  •      1 cup organic powder coconut milk (wilderness family naturals is the brand to buy) or 1 can of full-fat canned coconut milk (choose a BPA Free can – Earth Choice is my favourite)
  •      4 cups of water (1 cup for the canned coconut milk
  •      1tsp sea salt
  •   6 tbsp. Great Lakes Hydrolysate gelatin (optional) 

In a med saucepan, mix coconut milk powder, water, and salt. Allow water to come to a low simmer, for about 5min. Once well incorporated take off heat, and add gelatin. Mix to incorporate.

Let cool and enjoy throughout the week!

Coconut milk is a great source of fiber as well as healthy fat.

TIGERNUT MILK:

A tigernut may sound like it comes from a nut, but it’s not a nut at all. It’s  a root veggie, so it’s grain free, gluten free, dairy free and nut free.

This stuff is an awesome alternative because it has a very similar sweetness of milk with a slightly nuttier taste.

The great thing about this ‘milk’ is that it’s loaded with prebiotic fiber, making it very gut friendly and is also a great source of iron and magnesium.

It’s not readily available in all stores yet, but you can find it in many health food stores in the milk or Kombucha section.

Try these out for yourself and let me know which is your favourite!

In health,

~Daniela
Feeling lost when it comes to your health, weight loss, and your relationship to food? Daniela is a health coach & personal trainer, you can read more about her on her bio page, or reach out to her at [email protected]

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KARSTEN DICKIE

Hey BBBC family! My name is Karsten Dickie and I am a coach at King West Best Body Bootcamp.

Growing up I was very involved in sports. I played competitive volleyball, basketball and hockey. I was always fascinated with how the body works, nutrition, strength training and anything that involved athletics. Applying my knowledge I noticed improvement of my health, energy and body transformation which then had me hooked on weight training. That’s when I knew I wanted to help impact people’s lives and share my knowledge about exercise, mobility and nutrition to help achieve their goals.

I received my diploma from Algonquin College for Fitness & Health Promotion and I have been doing group training for six years now. Additionally, I’ve trained hockey teams, volleyball teams, large event groups, and one-on-one training.

I’m passionate about enhancing the health, fitness and overall well-being of clients. With my skills and knowledge, I help clients achieve their goals in and out of the gym.

Outside of training I like to do yoga, read, play team sports, and spend time with my friends and family.

CERTIFICATIONS/ACHIEVEMENTS:

Algonquin College Fitness & Health Promotion
CanFitPro PTS
Lucas Parker Barbell Cycling
CPR/AED2

ANDY RANDHAWA

Hey there!
I’m Andy Randhawa, the newest addition to the Best Body Bootcamp family.

You can’t hear my accent while reading this but I’m Australian.
I grew up playing a lot of sports like tennis, basketball, boxing and footy (Aussie rules football) and competed professionally in tennis.

I have transformed bodies for over 12 years and also helped them show it off on stage.

I have an extensive knowledge about training and nutrition which I can apply to my clients to bring them closer their goals.

When I’m not making people sore or make them complain while training I spend my time doing filmmaking, videography and hanging out with friends (I need new ones in Canada).

Look forward to making you get your dream body.

CERTIFICATIONS/ACHIEVEMENTS:

Diploma of Fitness
Bachelors of Exercise Science
BoxFit Level 1&2

DANIELA NAHAS

My journey in fitness and health began about 15 years ago. Before that, like many of you I struggled with yo-yo dieting, and doing countless hours of cardio just to stay looking slim. Boy I wish I could talk some sense into my past self! But health is a journey and I am so grateful for all of my experiences, which have shaped what I have to offer our members today.
Over the years I have experienced first hand the life changing benefits of incorporating the right kind of exercise into my life. That motivated me to become a personal trainer 15 years ago, and it still continues to motivate me today. I want everyone to be able to to experience what exercise can do for their well being, self confidence and physique.
I used to struggle with my nutrition in a big way, so I completely empathize with you, if this is the hardest part for you when it comes to seeing long term change. I once struggled with eating disorders, followed by any years of a very negative relationship to food, even during my initial years as a personal trainer.

It occurred to me one day that I could not help my clients make changes and make better choices, without first focusing on myself. It was through completing my Holistic Lifestyle Coach Certification that I was able to change my relationship to food and be able to genuinely help clients get closer to their goals.

My increasing passion for nutrition and health led me to become certified as a Health Coach. As a health coach, I am able to help my clients delve deeper into your relationship with food and their health. What lies beneath our patterns and habits is fascinating and when you can tap into that it can have an incredibly powerful impact on our lives, and bring about real change!

These days I leave most of the bootcamp training to our awesome trainers, but I continue to share my passion for nutrition and fitness in our private member facebook group and work on our ever evolving member offerings.

My other passion? I am the luckiest mom to a 9-year-old boy. He keeps me on my toes and I must admit has helped me grow in ways I never thought possible. Together with hubby Roger Nahas, we like to spend plenty of time outdoors, along with the latest family hobby – board games.

When I get me time, I like to do yoga, read, cook, and spend time in nature.

I look forward to having you join us!

CERTIFICATIONS/ACHIEVEMENTS:

Health Coach Certification – Health Coach Institute
C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach Level 2
C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach Level 1
Scientific Core Training , C.H.E.K Institute
Program Design, C.H.E.K Institute
Human Kinetics Exercise Anatomy
SPI Advanced Training for General Fitness
SPI Technical Aspects of Strength Training
SPI Nutrition for Sport and Performance
Emergency First Aid & CPR

ROGER NAHAS

My journey in fitness and nutrition is a little different than most. You see, I’m a former fat kid! The kid who was a total introvert! I was always the guy who was too embarrassed to take his shirt off at the beach! But I remember the day everything changed for me – I looked in the mirror and wasn’t happy with what I saw. I made the decision to change my body and my life. It was 1999 and I took a before pic and measurements and body fat and I entered the Body for Life Challenge. Over the next 90 days, I completely changed my eating habits, and worked out regularly. I actually was awarded the Canadian Grand Champion for my age category!

I was no longer the fat kid. I looked forward to getting to a beach so I could take my shirt off and I became more outgoing and fun! After seeing the difference it made in my life I decided that I wanted to dedicate my life to helping people realize the amazing benefits of optimal health and fitness.

I started out as most trainers do in your typical gym. After years of working in a gym setting, I was getting disillusioned with how Big Box Gyms operated. I wanted to train people functionally and to make their bodies strong in the movements they used in the real word. I wanted to make working with a highly trained instructor more affordable, and I wanted to make fitness fun because let’s face it; if you are having a blast, it makes it that much easier to stick to it. The result was the launching of Best Body . I have to tell you that although I looked great in the after pic above, the food and exercise plans I followed to get that after pic, hurt me in the long run. It made me look good from the outside but my body was breaking down on the inside. The way I was working out and what I thought was healthy eating was in fact hurting me in the long run. I was over training, taking longer to recover from my workouts, I tore my rotator cuff and had gut issues. Nothing I could do was helping and then I was introduced to a C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach who helped me. Turns out I was stressing my body beyond repair and then giving it food that wasn’t helping but was actually stressing my body even more. He made me look at my body and the food I put into it in a totally different way.

That lead me to complete my certification as a C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach and we pass that knowledge on and encourage holistic nutrition to our members.

In addition to running the day-to-day operations of Best Body Bootcamp, I also work with individual clients doing fitness training as well as holistic nutrition and lifestyle coaching.

When I’ve got a bit of free time, I spend as much of it as possible with my wife and son, I bike year round, play hockey, practice Tai Chi daily, read & take courses.

I hope to see you soon so we can transform your body and life!

CERTIFICATIONS/ACHIEVEMENTS:

C.H.E.K Golf Performance Specialist
C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach Level 2
C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach Level 1
Scientific Core Training , C.H.E.K Institute
C.H.E.K Golf Performance Specialist
C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach Level 2
C.H.E.K Holistic Lifestyle Coach Level 1
Program Design, C.H.E.K Institute
Program Design, C.H.E.K Institute
Scientific Core Training , C.H.E.K Institute

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I’ve been a member for 7 months. Great workouts with great people. A very friendly and positive environment with fantastic coaching staff. Highly recommended!

Brian Andersen