How to make horchata de chufa and fartons: the popular Valencian snack
The chufa It is a brown tuber on the outside and yellowish on the inside, which was introduced by the Arabs in our country in the 8th century. It is really known in Valencia, where its cultivation in the region of l'Horta Nord is protected with the designation of origin Tigernut from Valencia.
It is a tubercle protagonist of the popular Horchata, because with it the well-known drink is made, ideal during the summer months for its great refreshing power.
Besides being ideal for summer, it also brings interesting benefits and properties. In relation to its nutritional content, it is especially rich in vitamins (vitamin C and E) and minerals (phosphorus, magnesium, iron and calcium).
It helps reduce high cholesterol levels, provides enzymes that facilitate digestion, being ideal for people with delicate stomachs, it is antidiarrheal because of its high starch content and it is also useful in people with high blood pressure, since it does not provide sodium.
What is tiger nut horchata?
There is no doubt that if there is a natural star drink for summer (or even practically for any time of the year when we want to refresh naturally and mitigate the heat that we can feel), that is the delicious Horchata.
It is an extremely healthy drink that is obtained from the chufa, a tuber of brown color, that is cultivated in Spain from century VIII, when it was introduced by the Arabs, who brought it from the distant region of Chuf (in Sudan).
And the fartons? What does it consist on?
The fartons, however, they become the traditional elongated bun with which the horchata is accompanied, and that is usually consumed by soaking them in the Valencian drink, by soaking them with the drink.
Specifically, we are facing a typical Alboraya sweet (in Valencia, where tiger nut horchata traditionally also comes from). It consists of an elongated bun, fluffy, soft and sweet, whose sponginess makes it the ideal sweet to be able to absorb the horchata.
Since the time of James I (King of Aragon and Valencia between 1238-1276), the horchateros of Alboraya tried to find a sweet with which to accompany the horchata. However, it was not until the 60's when the Polo family elaborated an elongated, sweet and tender bun, which became the perfect accompaniment to horchata.
Recipe of homemade tigernut horchata. Discover how to make it
Although we can find it in many hypermarkets and supermarkets at any time of the year, it is true that it is not the same as enjoying an authentic homemade chufa horchata. Therefore, whether you want to enjoy it right now or if you want to make it at another time, we propose a simple one below recipe for tiger nut horchata. Enjoy it!.
Ingredients:
- 250 gr. of chufa
- 1 liter of water
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1 Teaspoon vanilla extract
- The crust of 1 lemon
- Sugar to taste)
Production of tiger nut horchata:
First you must wash the tiger nuts well, until the moment when the water comes out completely clean.
Leave to soak for 12 hours.
Once the soaking time has passed, drain them and put them in the blender with the lemon rind, cinnamon, vanilla essence and water.
Mix everything together and pass it through a sieve or colander to extract the drink.
Put it in the refrigerator until it is consumed.
When we go to serve it, we put the sugar to taste and more cinnamon if necessary.
How to make delicious fartons (traditional recipe)
Traditionally the horchata of tigernut is taken along with a wonderful long pastry candy called fartón, which is tender and fluffy and usually soaked in the drink. Do you dare to prepare them to accompany your horchata of freshly made homemade chufa?
Ingredients:
- 600 g of strength flour
- 2 medium eggs
- 100 g of sugar
- 50 g of fresh baker's yeast
- 100 ml of sunflower oil
- 100 ml of water
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 pinch of salt
Ingredients for glaze:
- 100 g of icing sugar
- Half a glass of water
Elaboration of the fartons:
Let's go there. First let's dissolve the yeast in the water. Now take a clean container and put the flour inside, forming a kind of volcano in the center. Inside, place the eggs, the already dissolved yeast, the pinch of salt and the sugar.
Mix all ingredients well. Then add the sunflower oil and massage it well. Now form a ball with the dough, cover it with the help of a clean cloth and let it rest for 30 minutes.
After this time divide the dough into different portions (for this amount of dough you can divide between 25 to 30 servings), and leave them at rest for another 10 minutes more.
After this time stretches each portion with the help of a kitchen roll (preferably wood), until leaving them in rather thin sheets. Then, one by one, roll them up to leave the dough shaped like a stick or cigarette.
Place baking paper in the baking tray and place them on top, leaving some distance between them. Let them now stand covered with a cloth for 1 hour, until they double their volume. Preheat the oven to 180º C.
After this time, introduce the fartons in the oven and let them cook for 10 or 15 minutes. Then remove the tray from the oven and let it cool on a rack.
Meanwhile, we are going to prepare the glaze with which we will paint our wonderful fartons. For this we heat the glass with water, and when it is very hot, in a small bowl we put the icing sugar and one or two tablespoons of hot water. Mix it well.
Once the glaze is ready, we paint our fartons to taste. And, to finish, sprinkle with a little icing sugar on top.
How to eat the fartons with the tigernut horchata?
It is usual that, in Valencia, with each glass of refreshing tiger nut milk - which is served in a long glass - a dish of fartons is served.
Thanks precisely to its elongated shape, It is common to introduce the farton to the bottom of the glass, and soak it well in the horchata to absorb it. Then, its spongyness and sweet taste makes it has become precisely the most traditional and known dessert. ThemesVegetable drink
