Many varieties of horchata are widely popular across Spain and Latin America. Our rice-and-almond-based version, flavored with Ceylon cinnamon, is a style typical to Mexico. It’s a cinch to make, and the sweet, cold, creamy drink is the perfect foil for warm weather and spicy food.
Toasting the almonds and cinnamon brought out their full potential, adding depth and complexity to this drink made with relatively few ingredients. Blending the water, rice, toasted almonds, cinnamon, sugar, vanilla, and salt for one minute created a rich, full-flavored horchata, and straining the horchata through a nut milk bag simplified the usual process of straining through cheesecloth and ensured that it was perfectly smooth and creamy, with no trace of chalkiness or grit.
