Love at First Sip: Three Delicious Drinks from Baja California Sur
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Strolling through DUM, a lovely Todos Santos restaurant located in a palm oasis. Also where I had my first Carajillo. Photo: Susan Able
By Susan Able | Edible DC
A true delight from my recent excursion to Baja California Sur was trying three Mexican beverages that were new to me. After returning home, I couldn’t stop thinking about them (or talking about them, sorry friends), so naturally I had to recreate them at home here in Maryland.
These delicious beverages may be very familiar to you, and if so, I consider you a lucky individual. I’m a food curious cat of a traveler, but I realized while exploring the local food scene in Baja California Sur that my go-to when eating authentic Mexican cuisine has been to stick to the tequila, mescal, margarita and beer program. And color me uniformed, because as our group explored La Paz and Todos Santos, my knowledgeable friends pointed out that enjoying the unique flavors of Mexican drinks are some of the best things about the country.
Now that I’ve got my new drink friends in rotation, I’m sharing the recipes with you. The perfect accompaniment to a taco night at home, for a Labor Day or early fall cookout, or just enjoyed on their own. And if you need a pick-me-up on a hectic weekend, meet the Carajillo. Truly something for everyone, the Strawberry Horchata is dairy-free and vegan, Cebada is gluten-free and the Carajillo is a lightly alcoholic drink. You’re welcome friends, enjoy.
Agua de Cebada. Photo: Motionshooter
Agua De Cebada (Barley Water)
Makes 6-8 servings
If you love sweet cinnamon flavors as I do, then this drink will be tops for you as well. A barley water relative to the horchata (which is rice-based), it’s a drink with a long heritage. In southern Spain, thirsty people have consumed Cebada since the 18th century, and many food historians argue even longer. Versions of cebada found all over Central America, with slight variations. Nicaragua has a very similar drink, but its called Fresco de Cebada, and in El Salvador, their cebada includes strawberry or raspberry flavoring.
In Baja California Sur, you can find Agua De Cebada sold by taco shops, street vendors and casual local restaurants in all the places that locals eat. In La Paz, I drank my first glass over ice on a hot day while eating a marlin taco on a street corner. It was incredibly refreshing.
Note that you can buy cebada barley powder at most Mexican groceries in the spices section or order from Amazon, but some powders (like this one on Amazon) have sugar and cinnamon already added. If that is the case, you will need to reduce the amount of condensed milk, sugar and cinnamon to your taste.
Ingredients
64 ounces water
1 ½ cup cebada powder
12 ounce can evaporated milk
12 ounce can sweetened condensed milk (or sugar to taste)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
To make:
In a large pitcher, add the ground cebada powder and the water. Stir vigorously until all lumps and the powder dissolve. (Some of the barley powder may settle in the bottom of the glasses after serving, and that’s fine.)
Next add the evaporated milk, the condensed milk, the vanilla extract and the cinnamon. Vigorously stir again, and then serve over ice. Sprinkle a little cinnamon on top to garnish.
Strawberry Horchata.
Strawberry Horchata
Makes 4 servings
This is a beautiful, rice-based drink. And it’s addictively delicious. Strawberry season may have passed, but you can use organic frozen strawberries here, just let them thaw first. (Use organic fresh or frozen strawberries whenever possible to avoid chemical spraying.) There are many ways to approach it making horchata, most call for soaking rice and then blending it such as this one and this one, but I decided to try the rice flour approach and was very happy with the outcome.
Ingredients
6 cups chilled water
2 tablespoons rice flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup almond milk or oat milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups halved strawberries washed and hulled (set aside some strawberry slices for garnish if desired)
3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk*
To make:
Put water into a large pitcher and chill.
Mix the rice flour, cinnamon and almond milk together in a small pot. Warm the mixture over medium-high heat until it starts to boil. Add the vanilla extract, turn the heat off and set aside.
Combine the fresh or thawed frozen strawberries, the condensed milk and one cup of water. Stir until well mixed and smooth. Strain the rice flour mixture into the chilled pitcher of water. Add the the strawberry-condensed milk mixture and mix well.
Chill for four hours in the refrigerator. Serve over ice with some strawberry slices and a dusting of cinnamon.
*If you don’t like drinks that are too sweet, consider reducing the amount of sweetened condensed milk or skip it entirely.
Carajillo. Photo: Susan Able
Iced Carajillo
Serves 2
My friends and I found ourselves lunching at DUM, a dreamy restaurant tucked into a palm oasis in Todos Santos, BCS. We sampled the tasting menu, which was absolute perfection, Chef Aurelien Legeay, a Master Chef of France.
The tasting menu was paired with cocktails, and well, I started feeling a bit sleepy. My companion, writer Donna Sozio, said, “Waiter, please bring my friend a Carjillo.” She explained that she had ordered the perfect pick-me-up—iced espresso with a shot of Licor 43—a little buzz from caffeine softened by a touch of alcohol.
Licor 43 was new to me, and apparently I’m late to that party too, because it is one of the most popular liqueurs in Spain, Latin America and Mexico. Even though it has 43 ingredients (hence the name) ranging from herbs, citrus, spices and fruits, it’s main flavor is vanilla with side notes of cinnamon and orange. It’s quite good on it’s own for an after-dinner drink, friendlier and less medicinal than other some other European amaros and liqueurs.
And yes. The Carajillo at DUM completely revived me. An amazing afternoon drink, it was served to me in a balloon wine glass with lots of ice and I like to do that too at home.
Ingredients
4 ounces espresso
4 ounces Licor 43
Ice
Lemon peel or orange peel for garnish
To make:
Chill your glasses in the freezer while you make the espresso and get organized.
Make the espresso. Set aside.
Retrieve your chilled glasses and add the ice so it fills the balloon glass halfway. If you have large cube or large ball ice, this would be the time to use it, it would be amazing.
Pour the Licor 43 over the ice and stir.
Next, very slowly pour the coffee over a the back of a spoon and into the glass. The goal should be to form a layer of coffee over the golden Licor 43. Enjoy!
For more information on visiting Baja California Sur, go to Visit Baja California Sur or Go La Paz.
Susan Able is the publisher and managing editor of Edible DC, and she also writes about food, sustainability, lifestyle and travel. Follow her @edible_dc or @susieqable
