Today is Cinco de Mayo. I don’t celebrate this holiday as many do but it turns out my recent recipes have been of Mexican origin. Actually, thanks to my sister who said I have not posted many Mexican or Tex-Mex recipes. My last post I made Mexican Barbacoa that cooked in my slow cooker for 8 hours, until tender and shredded easily with a fork. Because the meat is very spicy (depending on the amount of chipotle paste you use) it seemed like a good idea to make a cool drink to go along with this special meat.
I am not a margarita fan so Mexican Horchata came into my mind which is a popular Mexican beverage. Traditionally Horchata is made with white rice which can involve overnight refrigeration and a few steps of blending the mixture. This recipe uses rice flour instead. Then to kick it up a notch by adding some fresh strawberries it became the perfect beverage for a lunch with Barbacoa quesadillas.
Strawberry Horchata with a Barbacoa Quesadilla
- 2 tbsp. rice flour or sweet rice flour (see Note to see the difference between the two)
- 1 small 3-inch cinnamon stick (I used a 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon) eliminating a blending step
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1-1/4 lbs. strawberries, hulled and cut into chunks
- 3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk – I love this stuff
- 6 cups of water, divided
If you choose to use a cinnamon stick you will have to blend it in a food processor or blender along with the flour and almond milk. If using ground cinnamon just add to a small saucepan with the flour and milk and heat just to boiling. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla.
Blend the chopped strawberries, condensed milk and one cup of the 6 cups of water. Mix as well as possible. Add the rice flour mixture into the water and then the strawberry mixture. I then like to strain it in a fine sieve to remove any pulp or seeds. I ended up with 8 cups of very smooth strawberry horchata. Adjust for sweetness – it was just right for me!
Chill for a few hours or overnight.
Pour over ice and garnish with strawberries.
NOTE: The following information comes from thekitchn.com
Rice flour is ground from long or medium grain rice, what most of us probably have in our pantries. It has some thickening properties, but is better used in gluten-free flour mixes for baked goods. White or brown, all rice flours share similar texture and uses.
Sweet rice flour is ground from short grain glutinous rice, aka “sticky rice”. It does not contain gluten rather it has a much higher starch content than other kinds of rice, making it an extremely efficient thickening agent for sauces or binder for things like mochi and noodles. I heard about this flour through one of my Hawaiian cookbooks.
Recipe by cookingwithauntjuju.com
Something tells me I should’ve planned ahead. 🍃🍓
For Cinco de Mayo maybe but the beverage and quesadillas can be made any time 🙂
Good to know there’s a quicker way of preparing Horchata. Adding fresh strawberries is a great idea! 🙂
Yes, I never tried the traditional beverage but I know this recipe is much simpler and certainly tasty with the addition of strawberries 🙂 I just liked the pulp removed…
This definitely makes it smoother and more drinkable. 🙂
One of my favorite smoothies uses strawberries and I keep the pulp as I want the thickness but with this beverage I decided to remove it 🙂