Here is one of the best reasons to visit Brazil, and you teetotalers out there just don't know what you're missing! Batidas are heavenly mixes of fresh fruit juice and cachaτa - the potent sugarcane brandy from Brazil. Sometimes the recipe will also call for "leite condensado" (sweetened condensed milk) and/or other liquor. They are usually prepared in a blender and served in tiny glasses, with crushed ice added.
The most common batidas are made with passion fruit (batida de maracujß), cashew juice (batida de caju) and coconut milk (batida de coco). Fortunately for us, residents of these northern latitudes, these juices and the coconut milk can be found in Latin and Oriental grocers. Batidas frequently have humorous names like angels' piss, virgin's sweat, monkey's milk, etc. Enough intro, here are some great recipes I've tried over the years, courtesy of my good friends in Rio and Salvador da Bahia. Oh, and keep checking back with us, we will be adding new recipes from time to time. For pictures of Brazilian fruits, try our Sherbets and Juices Pages.
A pitcher of batida de caju.
Capoeira (from Bahia, as you may well have guessed!
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 small bottle of coconut milk
1/2 cup of Creme de Cacao
1/2 cup of cognac
Blend until smooth, add crushed ice and serve in tiny glasses.
Batida de maracujß (Passion Fruit Batida)
For each measure of cachaτa, use 1/2 of maracujß. Add sugar and crushed ice to taste, mix and serve. Remember that passion fruit is very tart!
Batida de caju (Cashew Fruit Batida)
Same as above. Again, cashew juice is very tart; it's a great way to get your vitamin C.This batida is also called Caju Amigo (Friendly Cashew). The original Caju Amigo is a sip of cachaτa followed by a bite of the fruit, but I don't know too many people who can do it, for obvious reasons.
Squeezing cashews for fresh juice for batidas, Recife, Pernambuco.
Leite de onτa
(It roughly translates as Jaguar Milk, onτa being a large, spotted feline - not the kind of pussycat you have at home, but the wild one!)
1 can sweetened condensed milk
same measure of vodka (use the milk can)
1/2 measure of Creme de Cacao (again use the milk can)
Blend until smooth, add crushed ice and serve in tiny glasses. Sprinkle each glass with ground cinammon, it looks and tastes great.
Batida de Amendoim (Peanut Batida)
1 can sweetened condensed milk
same measure of cachaτa
1 cup of crushed roast peanuts
Blend until smooth, add crushed ice and serve in tiny glasses.
Batida de Coco (Coconut Batida)
- A pitcher of batida de coco.
This is a good one to make in the US because we can use coconut cream. For each measure of cachaτa use two measures of coconut cream. Blend well and add crushed ice to taste. Yummy!
Batida de Milho Verde (Sweet Corn Batida...yeah, amazing isn't it?)
This recipe is for a crowd! Well, it depends, really...
1 small can of sweet corn
1/2 a bottle of cachaτa
2 Tbsp of sweetened condensed milk
Blend until smooth. Strain. Add sugar and crushed ice to taste.
There's a bar/restaurant in the neighborhood of Leblon in Rio de Janeiro called Academia da Cachaτa. It's a cute name - I don't need to translate, do I? Great place to try batidas and eat good Brazilian food (I just ate there myself. Wonderful!). These guys stock over 2,000 different brands of cachaτa. Have someone call a taxi to take you back to your hotel!
