I examined the $330 Almond Cow Starter Set, which incorporates the milk maker and some equipment, resembling a somewhat cute branded glass milk jug, and a cleansing brush. The method of getting milk out of your electrical cow is straightforward: Add water to the vessel (between 5 and 6 cups), put the dry elements within the filter cup, twist it onto the underside of the lid so the blender arm is within the supplies, put the lid on, and press the button. The Almond Cow then grinds and mixes every part, a course of that takes a couple of minutes. When it’s executed, the sunshine on the highest turns blue, and the milk is prepared. The pulp is saved within the filter cup, which you take away and clear by hand. A collector cup is included, which inserts over the filter cup to cease it dripping all over the place. The vessel additionally needs to be rinsed out between makes use of.
I discovered the milk the Almond Cow produces was scrumptious. The high-speed blender with a number of blades meant the almonds had been effectively blended, and little or no grainy plant materials was left behind. The milk got here out just a little frothy, like a pint of albino Guinness. The froth shortly settled, although, and the 5 cups that the Almond Cow produces must be sufficient for a household breakfast or a day of coffee-making. After utilizing the Almond Cow, there may be lots of cleansing: Clear the filter cup, rinse the highest off (the milk will get splashed contained in the vessel as it’s blended), and clear the vessel itself. It’s no shock that the starter pack I examined additionally included a flexible scrubbing brush that helps get the gunky plant pulp out of the filter.
I additionally discovered that with chunkier elements like almonds, you should push the filter cup up fairly laborious to make sure it’s accurately locked into place when attaching it to the highest. That’s as a result of the blender blades sit proper on the backside of the cup, and a nut can get caught under the blades, conserving the twist lock from partaking correctly. If the cup works its method unfastened throughout mixing, it makes a multitude and will injury the blade. The best strategy to keep away from this, I discovered, was to softly shake the cup whereas attaching it to the highest to maintain the supplies transferring. I additionally discovered that whenever you pour the milk out, the highest of the Almond Cow has a behavior of falling off as you tip the entire thing to get the ultimate milk out of the vessel. There isn’t a locking mechanism that holds the lid in place, solely gravity.
Nonetheless, the Almond Cow does an efficient job. It makes well-blended milk in respectable portions and does it fairly shortly. What it doesn’t do, nonetheless, is deal with the number of different varieties of milk some machines can. You might be restricted to uncooked milk like almonds, cashews, and oats. —Richard Baguley
SpecsPitcher included?N/ANeed to soak nuts?NoPulp in milk?YesHeats milk?NoMaximum web milk per cycle5 cupsTime per cycle5 minutes