Dearest fine readers of Mirror,
Welcome back! It’s April and officially spring, though as I, Kent, write this edition of our Cooking Column, snow is falling in Hanover. In anticipation of the warmer days ahead, the flowers to bloom and the sunlit al fresco gatherings to linger over, I was inspired to write about a refreshing and spring-like drink: horchata!
In Spain, the drink can be traced back over a thousand years, where it likely had North African origins from the Moorish rule of the country. Horchata is usually made with chufa, or tiger nuts, in Spain today. The drink has also spread to Latin America. As chef and restaurant owner Gabriela Cámara writes in “My Mexico City Kitchen: Recipes and Convictions,” horchata is “the original ‘rice milk,’ a staple beverage across Mexico and in other parts of Latin America.” You can often find it in a glass dispenser behind the counter at taquerias in the states, too.
I tried making horchata a few times over break, with the basic formula of equal parts rice and nuts that is popular in Mexico. I use cashews, but you could also try almonds or walnuts, the latter of which Cámara notes are popular in Oaxaca. I adapted this recipe from “Tu Casa Mi Casa: Mexican Recipes for the Home Cook” by Enrique Olvera, Luis Arellano, Gonzola Goût and Daniela Soto-Innes. The only equipment you need is a blender and a fine-mesh sieve (though I recommend also lining the sieve with cheesecloth). The result is a rich drink that is not heavy and is ever so refreshing. Served over ice, it is perfect for large gatherings, delicious as the base for a cocktail and just the thing for a warm Hanover day. We hope such days arrive soon!
One more note… this spring, we would love to celebrate and share more recipes and stories from our community through this column. If you have a recipe you’d like to share with us, please reach out to us at kandvcook@gmail.com!
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of cashews (or another type of nut, such as almonds or walnuts)
- 1 cup of rice (I use brown rice)
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4 tablespoons of brown sugar
- 4 cups of water
Combine ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate overnight or at least eight hours. Blend until smooth and strain with a fine-mesh sieve.
Kent Friel ‘26 is an executive editor at The Dartmouth.
Vidushi Sharma ’27 is an executive editor and news reporter. She is majoring in Government and minoring in International Studies and Sociology.
