Vanilla Bean Horchata

Horchata is a creamy beverage made from rice and spiced with cinnamon and vanilla. Sounds weird, but I swear it’s delicious, especially when paired with spicy Mexican food!

Last weekend my brother Nathan and I decided to have a Steak, Shake, and Movie night. So we went to the store to buy steaks and ice cream (literally nothing else, we’re purists). On the way back to my car I go to reach for my keys and realize I don’t have them.

When I go places without my kids I get so excited about the fact that I don’t have to bring diapers, wipes, hot wheels, extra socks, 15 broken crayons, and 1 year old Easter candy (what’s in YOUR diaper bag?), that I grab my phone, keys, and wallet and hit the road. Freedom!!

Nathan looks into the car before I do and says, “Keys are inside.” Whew, I think, good, locked in the car is better than not knowing where they are.

Then he opened the door. Not locked.

Then I see where the keys are. In the ignition.

Then I realize that the car is on. Like, ON. Engine running. I drove to the store, put the car in park, got out, didn’t lock it, and then bought ice cream. (Priorities?) Also, we stared at steaks for like 10 minutes before picking one. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?? Don’t stupid people deserve to have their cars stolen??

I think I need a drink. But not the kind you’re thinking (I’m LDS, hello). Horchata it is!! (Where’s my segue award?)

Horchata (or-cha-ta) has been one of my favorite drinks since I was a kid. My family and I would go to the local taquerias and order it there. When you live in California you can find pretty amazing Mexican food. Normally my parents were too cheap to pay for drinks for our entire family at a restaurant, but I’m the youngest and by the time I was a teenager, enough kids were moved out that my brother and I managed to get them to splurge for horchata when it was time for tacos. There is just nothing quite like that creamy soothing sweet taste after a basket of chips and spicy salsa.

And guess what the secret ingredient is? There are two actually. Sweetened condensed milk (be still my heart) and Nielsen-Massey’s Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste. << Please tell me you have tried this stuff. It adds AMAZING flavor to desserts and drinks. It’s basically all the benefits of a true vanilla bean, but without the mess or hassle. I buy it by the jug. I’m not even kidding. My current jug is almost gone. I use it in everything. Fun fact: did you know that “Madagascar Bourbon” references the region, not the liquor? Who knew right?

The photo on the right is totally superfluous. I just wanted you to see my cinnamon whale.

Horchata is easy to make at home, you just have to remember to make it the night before, or at least a few hours in advance. Of course it goes great with Mexican food, but let’s not limit ourselves here. I can think of lots of other times I would want to drink horchata. Like every single day of the summer, for example.

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Vanilla Bean Horchata

Servings: 9 Servings

Prep Time: 5 mins

Cook Time: 5 mins

Chill Time: 8 hrs

Total Time: 8 hrs 10 mins

Horchata is a creamy beverage made from rice and spiced with cinnamon and vanilla. Sounds weird, but I swear it's delicious, especially when paired with spicy Mexican food!

 

Ingredients

• 2 cups long grain white rice, rinsed
• 6 cups water
• 1 tablespoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Vanilla Bean Paste
• 2 cinnamon sticks, or 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup water, to taste
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/4 cup cream, or milk
• 1/4 cup sugar
• More ground cinnamon and/or vanilla if desired.
• Ice

Instructions

• Place 2 cups of rice in a mesh strainer and run it under cold water for about 30 seconds, or until the water runs clear. Add it to a 9-cup capacity blender. (Blend in batches if you have a little blender.)
• Add 6 cups water, 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste, and 2 cinnamon sticks.
• Blend for about 1 minute, or until the rice and cinnamon sticks have broken up.
• Refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours. A full 8 hours is best.
• Pour the liquid through a fine mesh strainer into a large pitcher. Discard the rice.
• Add the can of sweetened condensed milk, water, milk, cream, and sugar. Stir well and taste it. Add more ground cinnamon and vanilla bean paste if you want. Adjust the sugar to taste.
• Pour into glasses filled with ice and serve really cold! Enjoy! Horchata is perfect with any kind of Mexican food.

Notes

Be sure to follow Nielsen-Massey on Facebook for awesome recipe updates!

Nutrition

Serving: 1 cup, Calories: 220 kcal, Carbohydrates: 42 g, Protein: 4 g, Fat: 4 g, Saturated Fat: 2 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1 g, Cholesterol: 12 mg, Sodium: 26 mg, Potassium: 92 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 8 g, Vitamin A: 144 IU, Vitamin C: 1 mg, Calcium: 60 mg, Iron: 1 mg

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: horchata, vanilla bean

Calories: 220kcal

Try out these other awesome summer drinks!

Easy Cucumber Lime Punch:

Basil Lemonade: (you must try this!!!)

June Bug (Orange Grenadine Ginger Ale):

Apple season is coming…!! Caramel Apple Cider Reduction Shake:

You’ll like these other drinks from great bloggers!

Agua de Jamaica from Simply Recipes (the drink you find next to Horchata in taquerias)
Pomegranate Lime Chia Fresca from Oh My Veggies
Blueberry Lemonade from Damn Delicious

This post is sponsored by Nielsen-Massey. When they contacted me about doing a post, I told them about the 32 oz. jug of Nielsen-Massey vanilla bean paste in my cupboard that is 3/4 gone. So needless to say, all opinions are my own! Love their products! Thanks for backing up brands I love, guys. Helps keep The Food Charlatan going. :)