Horchata comes from a family of beverages with a long history. Fun fact: It started as an ancient barley water in Roman times believed to be cooling and medicinal. Read more in my Gastro Obscura article, Why Are So Many Different Drinks Called Horchata?

1 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
2 Mexican cinnamon sticks, split in half and crumbled
8 cups water, divided
1-12 ounce can sweetened condensed milk

Place the rice in a colander and rinse under cold water. Place the rice, cinnamon sticks and 4 cups of water into a bowl. Cover and let sit a minimum of 4 hours or preferably overnight.

Remove the large pieces of cinnamon from the rice. It's okay to leave small pieces. Blend in two separate batches by adding 1/2 of the rice and water with some of the cinnamon stick. Puree until very smooth.

Using a fine strainer pour the blended mixture over a pitcher. Strain out as much liquid as possible. Repeat the process with the remaining rice, water, and cinnamon.

Stir in the canned condensed milks and the additional 4 cups of water. Chill and stir well before serving over ice. 

Makes about 12 cups