Sunflower seed milk
I had a jar of sunflower seeds sitting on my counter forever, and my friend Shakti suggested I try making sunflower seed milk. She said to blend 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds in the blender to a powder, then add 2 cups of water and blend some more. It was a bit gritty but not gritty enough to go through the trouble of straining it. I’m not a big sunflower seed fan, but I found the “milk” surprisingly refreshing.
I tried using it for a smoothie, and added 3/4 cup frozen raspberries and some vanilla, but the combination wasn’t good. The flavors didn’t really go and the raspberry seeds made it even more gritty. What would be a better combination?
Rating: B-
The captious vegetarian 
Susan Hackett said,
October 19, 2007 at 9:08 am
Hi B, I would suggest that you run the sunflower seed milk and the smoothie through a fine nylon strainer bag. Hardware stores have paint strainer nylon bags 1 gallon and 5 gallon for very little cost. I hope this helps you, Susan
Serena said,
December 11, 2007 at 9:52 pm
If you are really committed to making seed and nut milks, I recommend buying a SoyBella milk maker. It says it’s for making soy milk, but really, any nut or seeds, you can use. It is wonderful and so easy to use. You don’t have to do any straining; it strains it for you. Use a little maple syrup to sweeten it up. YUMMY!
JonathanCline said,
December 7, 2009 at 6:34 am
Let the raw sunflower seeds soak overnight first (8 hrs – 24 hrs). Then blend them. The benefits of soaking raw seeds is they sprout, creating beneficial nutrients. 1 handful of seeds to a cup or two of water.
captious said,
December 14, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Thanks for the suggestions Jonathan. I will try sprouting them before blending them sometime.
e said,
December 17, 2013 at 8:26 pm
I love sunflower milk for so many reasons!
I just soak and blend: 1 cup raw sunflowers to 4 cups of milk, and a tiny bit of Stevia. I blend till smooth, and don’t even strain it, but you could strain it if you want.
I put it over our homemade granola.
My husband is really happy with it as he likes the flavor, and he also says that in this horrific economy, it is a great nutritious money-saver.