Are plant-based alternatives milking their nutritional benefits?
Over the years, you may have noticed your milk aisle grow with more and more alternative, plant-based milk options. There are many reasons to opt for these plant-based milk alternatives. You might be like the 2-3% of US children allergic to dairy milk. You might relate to the 30-50 million of US adults that are lactose intolerant. You might be looking for a non-dairy option to cow’s milk for your vegan/vegetarian diet, environmental concerns, or a multitude of other reasons.
With so many different plant-based options, choosing your milk of choice may become confusing and overwhelming. In this post, we hope to ease your selection process by comparing the nutritional information of plant-based milk alternatives.
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Ultimately, it is important to individually consider each type of plant-based milk and if it is fulfilling your nutritional needs. Many plant-based milk are lower in calories and saturated fats compared to whole milk, but they also offer less protein content. For many individuals, the taste of milk serves as an important factor on whether or not they choose to incorporate it into their diet. It is difficult to capture the differences in taste between plant-based milks because of the subjective nature of the sense, but it is important to note the great range of taste between plant-based milks.
The following Apple Spice Baked Oatmeal recipe is a perfect meal to try a plant-based milk alternative:
Prep + cooking time: 40 min
Servings: 9
Ingredients
- 1 egg, beaten
- ½ cup applesauce
- 1 ½ cups of your milk choice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 apple, chopped
- 2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- For the topping:
- 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons chopped nuts (optional)
Instructions
- Wash hands with soap and water.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly oil an 8×8- inch baking dish.
- Combine the egg, applesauce, milk, vanilla and oil in a bowl. Mix in the apple.
- In a separate bowl, mix the rolled oats, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Add to the liquid ingredients and mix well.
- Pour mixture into baking dish, and bake for 25 minutes.
- Remove from oven and sprinkle with brown sugar and (optional) nuts.
- Return to oven and broil for 3 to 4 minutes until top is browned and the sugar bubbles.
- Serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.
For more recipes involving plant-based milk, check out our post on Allergy-Friendly Breakfast Foods.
Which plant-based milk alternatives have you tried? Share with us in the comment section below.
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/10/style/plant-milk.html
https://www.farmsanctuary.org/news-stories/a-guide-to-plant-based-milk/
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2022/03/getting-the-skinny-on-plant-based-milks/
https://ptskills.co.uk/7-benefits-of-oat-milk/
https://www.healthline.com/health/milk-almond-cow-soy-rice#coconut-milk