Balancing it out with a success....

On the heels of the unsuccessful banana granita debacle, I was feeling very unsatisfied and wanted to do something more successful. That something, was Horchata. (Recipe at the end)

Horchata is a drink The Husband loves.  I smelled it once.  It smelled okay, but I never got around to actually trying it.  You can buy this powder stuff that you mix with milk to make horchata at home, but I don't think it was that great because The Husband bought it once and never even finished the bag.  So I thought I would see about making it from scratch.  I looked over a couple of recipes and it turned out to be surprisingly easy!!

Step One:
Put a cup of long grain rice in 2 quarts of warm water.  Stir it up a little and let it sit for 1/2 an hour.

Done!

Step 2:  Strain out the rice and reserve the water.  Take the rice and a 1/2 tsp of cinnamon and put them through the food processor until it makes a paste.  Add it back into the water.  This time you will let it sit in there for at least 2 hours, stirring it occasionally to get all that ricey, cinnamony goodness mixed in.

Done!!

Step 3:  Strain it using a fine sieve and throw away all the ricey gunk.  Mix in 1 1/4 cups of milk, 14 oz of sweetened condensed milk and 1 tsp of vanilla extract.  Then chill it for at least two hours.  Then pour yourself a glass and enjoy!

Done!!!  So I tasted it.  It was delicious!!  Sweet but not too sweet.  Cinnamony but not over powering.  Not too thick, not too thin.  It was really good.  And yet, I still have a weird block against it.  I had a small glass of it and that was all.  Every time I saw it in the fridge, I would think about drinking it but would inevitably end up with one of my usual drinks instead.  Something about it just throws me off and makes me resistant.  It looks like milk, which I hate.  It smells like cinnamon, which I hate.  It kind of reminds me of eggnog, which I hate.  It is the perfect storm of something delicious all packaged up to look like something I would never enjoy.  The Husband loved it.  It lasted all of three days before he finished it.  I am definitely going to make more of it though.  And this time, I am going to remember to ignore my instincts and just go with it.

(PS-I love those POM glasses.  I don't know why they quit selling those.  Half of our glasses are these POM glasses.)

(PPS-Apparently Horchata goes very well with rum.)

Horchata
1 cup uncooked long grain rice
2 quarts warm water
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/4 cups milk
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Rum to taste (optional)

1. Mix the rice and warm water together in a bowl, and let stand for 1/2 hour. Reserving the water, drain, and place the rice in the bowl of a food processor. Add the cinnamon and process until a paste forms. Return the rice to the water and let stand at least 2 hours, stirring occasionally as the water turns milky white.
2. Strain the rice through a fine sieve into a bowl or pitcher. Stir in the milk, condensed milk, vanilla, and rum, if desired (Can also be added to individual servings), until evenly blended. Refrigerate at least 2 hours. 
3. Serve and enjoy!!