Hola Hola! Feliz Año Nuevo! Today I’m sharing with you a recipe for a refreshing pistachio Horchata!
Before I do, I just wanted to give you an update on what’s goin on with Chicano Bakes! I turned in my manuscript in September, and photos in October, and I’m starting to work on the layout and graphics portion with my publisher.
The book is going to be the same length as my first (Chicano Eats), will be divided into 6 chapters (Basics, Pan Dulce Mexicano, Cakes, Desserts, Tamales & Antojitos, and Drinks) and will be featuring at least 75 recipes! I ended up developing around 85 recipes but things always change depending on how many are able to fit once layout and page count comes into play.
If I am left with any recipes that don’t make it into the book though, I’m going to make sure to offer them as a PDF download on here so you can print them out and keep them in the book! Anyways, back to the horchata.
What is the history of Horchata?
Horchata is a drink that can be traced back to Africa, where it was originally made with soaked and ground Tiger nuts (or chufa as it is called in Spain).
Mexico’s take on horchata is made by soaking rice and cinnamon together, then blending it together.
El Salvador has their own take on horchata which uses Morro seeds, which I find adds a deep nutty flavor reminiscent of cocoa.
How do you make pistachio horchata?
My pistachio horchata is really easy to throw together! The recipe starts by having you lightly toast the pistachios and cinnamon stick together, just until the cinnamon starts to become fragrant.
Make sure not to overdo it with the cinnamon and use more than advised. When I was working on this recipe I found that using more than 1 (3-4 inch) cinnamon stick really overpowered the pistachio flavor. As with my other horchata recipes, you steep the pistachios, cinnamon and rice in hot (but not boiling) water to extract even more flavor out of the cinnamon, and this also helps cut down on the soaking time.
If you are planning on making this make sure to buy shelled and unsalted pistachios, it’ll save you the workout of having to manually shell them later.
If you aren’t a fan of pistachios, I have 4 other horchata recipes that I’ve developed. You can find my strawberry horchata here, vegan & dairy free toasted coconut horchata here, and recipes for classic horchata and matcha horchata can be found in my cookbook!
That’s all I have for you today, if you’d like to keep up with what’s going on with Chicano Bakes, make sure to follow me on Instagram, I’ll be posting short reels featuring some of the desserts and baked goods there!
Make my Strawberry Horchata!
Make my Toasted Coconut Horchata (Vegan & Dairy Free)
Pair the Pistachio Horchata with my Enfrijoladas!
Pair the Pistachio Horchata with Vegan Friendly Al Pastor Tacos!
Pistachio Horchata
Ingredients
- 8 oz Shelled Pistachios , unsalted
- 1 Mexican Cinnamon Stick , (4-inch/10cm)
- 1 Cup Long-Grain White Rice
- 4 Cups Hot Water , (Hot to the touch but not boiling)
- 3 Cups Cold Water
- 13.5 oz Can Condensed Milk
- 1/2 Tsp Vanilla Extract
- Shelled Pistachios , for serving
Instructions
- In a dry skillet over medium-low heat, add the pistachios and cinnamon stick. Lightly toast just until the cinnamon starts to become fragrant, about 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.
- In a large bowl, mix together the rice, pistachios and cinnamon stick, then pour in the hot water. Set aside and let rest for 4 to 6 hours. Make sure the water is hot to the touch but isn’t boiling. We don’t want to cook the rice.
- Pour the mixture (liquid and all) into a blender, and blend for 30 seconds, then strain through a fine-mesh coffee filter (to ensure your horchata isn’t chalky or grainy) into a pitcher. Stir in the cold water, vanilla extract and the condensed milk.
- Serve over ice, garnished with pistachios.
1 Comment
Mari
July 29, 2022 at 3:15 pmLove! I used a bit less condensed milk but it was so good! My family loved it and asked me to make it again.