Vegetable milk is of two kinds: the natural milky substance secreted by different tree species, and the drink that is based on
vegetarian ingredients. Most of the trees that produce milk flourish in Central America, South America, Canary Islands near the northwest coast of mainland Africa, North Africa, Ceylon and India. Among the known milk trees are the Cow Tree, Demerara Milk Tree, Masaranduba Milk Tree, and the Tabaiba Milk Tree.
The Cow Tree is known as Palo de Vaca in Central and South America where it grows largely on the surface of rocks. Its milk flows from the bark when pierced and is sweet and nourishing and used as a
drink diet by the natives. It contains a fatty substance that resembles the butter of natural milk. The Demerara Milk Tree is found in Guyana, South America and produces a nutritious antipyretic white milky substance serving as a good substitute for cow’s milk among the Arawak Indians, the original natives of what is now known as Haiti. The latex produced from the stem of the Masaranduba Milk Tree is fatty and rich but odorless, while the Tabaiba Milk Tree has sweet, non-toxic milk that is only for medicinal purposes.
The
vegetable milk that is based on vegetarian ingredients is an alternative to cow’s milk that is rich in plant proteins. One of its two types is made from grains such as rice, oats, quinoa or pigweed, amaranth, barley and bulgur or parched wheat. The other is derived from nuts and seeds such as hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts, sesame, pestachios, pumpkin, Brazil nuts, pine nuts, and sunflower seeds. Among the popular milks made from these grains and nuts are the rice milk, groundnut milk, soy milk, oat milk, almond milk, and hazelnut milk. With the right recipe, these milks can also be made at home. The almond milk contains minerals like potassium, calcium and phosphorus, while the groundnut milk provides an alternative for vegetarians and those with intolerance to dairy products. Providing more calories is the hazelnut milk, while the rice milk has cleansing properties prepared from fermented rice grains. Soy milk contains natural estrogen that serves as a protection against breast cancer. The oat milk has Vitamins B1, B2, E and D, carbohydrates, and other important minerals such as copper and zinc, magnesium, sulfur, sodium, potassium, iron, and manganese.
Vegetable milk products come in the form of milk powder, evaporated milk, ghee or semi-fluid butter, condensed, cream powder, non-dairy creamers, and natural coconut milk. Vegetable milk powders have reduced purine content of grains. Evaporated filled milks are homogenized recombined mixture of milk solids, edible vegetable fats, and water. The pure palm edible vegetable ghee or milk butter ghee and milk fat ghee is used as a shortening. The condensed vegetable milk is a combination of
vegetable fat, sugar and milk constituents. When vegetable oil and milk powder are combined, baking milk powder is produced. Vegetable oil powder is milk powder serving as a creamer that improves both taste and color of
coffee . The vegetable milk fat non-dairy creamer adds rich and smooth taste to
cereals. A pure coconut milk is usually canned in its pure form for use in various cooking purposes.
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