Flavor of the Week: The non-dairy alternative, almond milk

One of the earliest plant-based milks to appear on retail shelves, almond milk has seen a steady  rise on restaurant menus for more than a decade, despite a number of other alternatives popping up.

Made by soaking ground almonds in water, then puréeing it, straining the liquid and often adding flavorings, sweeteners, stabilizers or a combination of the three, almond milk’s upward trend should continue as consumers focus on health and desire more plant-based dairy substitutes.

The plant-based trend’s journey on menus has been extraordinary, with that term growing more than 3000% on menus in the past four years, and now consumers want more than just plant-based meat replacements; they’re focused on replacing cow’s milk and other dairy in their diets as well.

Most popular in the fast casual segment, almond milk is an easy swap-in for drinks like smoothies and lattes.

Market research firm Datassential reports that 92% of the population knows about almond milk but only 61% have tried it.

Click through the gallery to learn more about this Flavor of the Week and see how one restaurant uses almond milk on its menu, and learn more about almond milk in the video below.