Creamy Horchata

The Foodies' KitchenApril 21, 2017

This post is also available in / Esta entrada también está disponible en ESPAÑOL (SPANISH)

Horchata is a popular rice-based drink throughout Latin America. Here, we share a slightly different version of the recipe, sweetened with condensed milk. You can also make it more (or less) creamy by playing with the water vs. milk ratio. For example, instead of using 3 cups of water and 2 cups of milk, you can make it less creamy by using 4 cups of water and 1 cup of milk.

You can also add 1 cup of raw almonds so they soak along with the rice, and if you want to make it vegan, you can replace the whole milk with almond milk. Some countries add peanuts or pepita seeds as well. We love the refreshing taste of the basic horchata: rice, milk and cinnamon… and we added a touch of vanilla beans and added some sweetness with condensed milk. We both prepare it at home during summer days, and its perfect to serve to kids in the afternoon.

As we usually do, we went looking for products for you to find at Almacenes Siman, and we hit the jack pot! We found a set of four glasses with golden polka dots… and of course they look gorgeous with the horchata! We also got a handy kitchen towel set and a bamboo spoon so we could mix our delicious drink.

Helga & Kitty

Creamy Horchata

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart
Makes 1-quart

Ingredients:
1 cup long grain white rice
1 cup of raw almonds
1 cinnamon stick
3 cups water
2 cup of milk
¼ cup sweetened condensed milk
¼ teaspoon vanilla
Ice, for serving
Ground cinnamon for garnish

Procedure

Add the rice and almonds into a big bowl. Break up the cinnamon stick into several pieces and add to the rice. Cover with 3 cups of hot, but not boiling water. Cover the bowl and refrigerate at least 2 hours but preferably overnight.
Blend the mixture until it is as smooth as possible. This can take as long as 2 to 4 minutes. The cinnamon will soften as it sits and does not need to be removed before blending.
Pour the mixture into a strainer set over a pitcher. Strain out as much liquid as possible, pushing on the solids with a spatula or spoon.
Stir in the milk, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla. Taste and add more sweetener or liquid as needed, choosing between water or milk depending on how creamy you want it.
Add ice to the pitcher, stir again, and serve in glasses.

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