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La Tienda in the Press

Afar - July 01, 2010
Afar

Feast - At the Global Table

Spain - Nuts for Horchata
Christopher Hall

glass of horchata with some chufa nuts sprinkled aroundServed so cold it's sometimes slushy, horchata is the essential drink of hot Spanish summers. Unlike its rice-based counterpart in Latin America, Spain's version is made from the chufa (tigernut), the tuber of a grassy plant. Chufas are dried for three months, ground up, and soaked in water, sugar, and often cinnamon and lemon peel. The process results in a milky, sweet beverage with an almondlike flavor. Legally protected by a "denominacíon de origen", the only chufas in Europe grow in and around Valencia. Horchata stands dot the coastal city between March and October. Year-round, "valencianos" sip in style at the central Mercado Colón - a soaring modernista masterpiece - or at old-time horchaterías like El Siglo and Santa Catalina. Outside town, cool off on the terrace at Horchatería Daniel with a frosty glass and a "fartón", a cigar-shaped pastry that's perfect for dunking.

$7 for a liter bottle, latienda.com

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