Sugar Free Horchata
Move over eggnog, there’s a new kid in town.
I first heard of horchata a few months ago, and immediately warmed to the idea of sweet cinnamon-spiced rice milk, which sounded truly delicious to me.
After having put it to the back of my mind as something to do “at some point”, this traditional Spanish and Mexican drink suddenly seemed to appear everywhere. I kept stumbling across mentions and recipes, and the more I heard of it, the more I wanted to try it myself.
So I did. With a few adjustments of course. After all, it needed a little sugar free makeover!
I don’t have much to compare it to. It’s a pretty new drink to me. But oh, it is yummy. Really really yummy.
And with the amount of cinnamon in it, it is a perfect drink for Christmas. In fact, although traditionally a cold drink served over ice, I actually prefer it warm! It makes a particularly good alcohol free sugar free after dinner option for children. And for the adults? Well, why not tip in just a little rum. It is Christmas after all! 🙂
A yummy sugar free, gluten free and vegan drink. Flavoured with cinnamon, it makes a great Christmas drink. Adapted from a recipe in Dairy Free Delicious by Katy Salter.
- 1/2 cup (100g) rice
- 1 cup (140g) blanched almonds
- 1 small cinnamon stick
- 1 tbsp rice syrup*, or sweeten to taste with stevia to keep sugar free
- 2-3 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 quart (1 litre) cold water
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Cover the rice, almonds and cinnamon stick with water in a large bowl and leave for 8 hours, or overnight.
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Rinse well and drain, then place in a blender (it's a good idea to chop the cinnamon stick into slightly smaller pieces at this point) with the sweetener, vanilla extract and water. Blitz until creamy and combined.
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Strain the mixture through a sieve lined with a muslin into a bowl or jug. I find it useful to gather the muslin together and squeeze at this point to get the last bits of liquid through the sieve.
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Discard the dry mixture, and serve the horchata cold or warm with ground cinnamon on top, if desired.
*rice syrup is classed as a free sugar by the World Health Organisation, but converts to glucose, not fructose, in the body, and so is less of a strain on the body, and particularly the liver. If you wish to make this drink totally sugar free, and not just fructose free, omit the rice syrup and replace with liquid stevia to taste, if desired.
Should the rice be cooked first?
Hi Jen, nope, just soaked. 🙂
How much stevia to substitute for 1 tbsp of rice syrup?
Stevia can be tough to call – I would try just a couple of drops of liquid stevia. If using powder, you may need to taste as you go and add tiny amounts until it’s right, as it’s so powerful it can be very difficult to get the amount just right without testing.