Horchata

With Cinco de Mayo on the horizon, I thought I would devote my postings this week  to Mexican fare.  Today, I am posting a recipe I found on David Lebovitz's blog Horchata.  Horchata is a drink made from rice in Mexico sometimes with vanilla but always with cinnamon.  You start with white rice and grind it fine in a blender.  Cover it with warm water and refrigerate overnight.  The next day add either rice milk or regular milk, sugar and stir.  Serve over ice.   This is a refreshing drink for hot days or just when you need a quick pick-me-up.

Horchata
From David Lebovitz

Ingredients:
2/3 cup white rice
3 cups warm water
1 (2-inch) cinnamon stick
3/4-1 cup sugar
2 cups rice milk or regular milk
Ground cinnamon. for serving

Directions:
1. In a blender, grind the rice so it is in fine pieces, roughly the consistency of very coarse polenta. (If your blender won't go that fine, that's okay and just bread up the rice as much as possible.)

Ground Rice

2. Transfer the rice to a bowl then pour warn water over it and add the cinnamon stick.  Cover and refrigerate at least eight hours, but preferably overnight.
3. Pluck out the cinnamon stick then puree the rice and water until it's as smooth as possible.  Strain the mixture through a sieve lined with a few layers of cheesecloth, squeezing it relatively firmly to extract as much of the rice flavor as possible.
4. Stir in the sugar and milk, mixing until the sugar is dissolved.  Taste, and adjust sweetness, if necessary.  Refrigerate until completely chilled.

Serving:Serve over ice with a sprinkling of ground cinnamon on top.

Storage: Store the horchata in the refrigerator for up to four days.

Makes about 6 cups

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