Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without these traditional hojarascas in our house! Called by other names, such as biscochitos, pan de polvo and polvorones, they are delicious! Don't wait until Christmas! I bake them a couple times a year!
Course Cookies, Dessert
Cuisine Mexican
Prep Time 35 minutesminutes
Cook Time 14 minutesminutes
Resting time 20 minutesminutes
Total Time 1 hourhour4 minutesminutes
Servings 24Cookies
Ingredients
Ingredients:
1/2tspanise seeds
3inchMexican cinnamon stick
1cwater
1 1/4cupsvegetable shortening, pork lard or butter
½cupgranulated sugarplus more for dusting
2large egg yolks
Zest of 1 large orangeoptional
1½teaspoonsbaking powder
3cupsall-purpose flour
1cupfinely ground pecansoptional
parchment paper
You Will Also Need
1/2cupgranulated sugar
1tspfresh ground Mexican canela(cinnamon) or already ground cinnamon
Instructions
Directions
In a small pot, combine the anise seeds and cinnamon stick with 1 cup of water. Bring to a quick boil for a few minutes. Remove from heat and let steep for 5 minutes. let cool.
Combine 1 1/4 cups of pork lard, shortening or butter and ½ cup of sugar in bowl. Using an electric hand mixer(or stand mixer), cream together until fluffy. Beat in the yolks until thoroughly blended. Strain the reserved tea. Set aside.
Reduce mixer speed to low and with the mixer running, mix in 1/3 cup of the cinnamon/anise tea, orange zest, baking powder and finally the flour, mixing just long enough to work in the flour. If the dough feels too crumbly, mix in a little more of reserved lard or shortening. If it feels too sticky, mix in 1-2 more tbsps of flour. If using pecans, fold them in now. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for 20-25 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Line cookie sheets with parchement paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough and use your favorite cutouts like hearts, stars or trees. You can also roll 1 inch balls and place them on the cookie sheets. Take the bottom of a glass and press cookies flat. Dip the bottom of glass in flour if it starts to stick.
Bake in preheated oven until lightly browned, about 12 to 14 minutes. While cookies are cooling, mix the 1/2 cup of sugar with 1 tsp of canela (cinnamon). Carefully dip each cookie into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Cool completely and store in airtight container. Yields up to 2 dozen cookies.
Notes
The orange zest is my addition. It's optional. If you like more anise flavor, you could mix in 1/2 tsp of ground anise to the dough when mixing.The nuts are optional, but were often added to give the cookie a more traditional feel. Mexican cinnamon sticks are softer than the sticks you typically find in most markets. The Mexican cinnamon can easily be ground with a micro plane or in a coffee grinder once broken into pieces.In the video, I used a very small star shaped cookie cutter. The cookies baked in less than 10 minutes.HOJARASCAS WITH NO EGGPrep Time- 30 minutesBake Time- 22 minutesYields- 28 small cookiesIngredients2 Mexican cinnamon sticks, 3 inches each1 tsp. anise seeds2 cups water2 c all-purpose flour1 c granulated sugar¼ tsp. salt2 tsps. ground cinnamon4 oz. pork lard or vegetable shorteningIn a small saucepan, combine the cinnamon sticks, anise seeds and 2 cups of water. Bring up to a boil. Reduce the heat to below medium and continue simmering until the tea reduces by half.While tea cooks, in a large bowl, combine the flour, ¼ c sugar, 1 tsp. cinnamon and salt. Whisk to combine. Set aside.When ready, strain the tea into a measuring cup. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a large baking sheet. Set aside.To the flour mixture, cut in the pork lard or shortening with your hand until it resembles wet sand. Gradually mix in 2 ounces of the concentrated tea until the dough forms. If it is too sticky, mix in another 1-2 tablespoons of flour adding a little at a time. If it feels too dry, knead in more tea. Cover dough and let it rest for 20 minutes.On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to ½ inch thick rectangle. Using a small 1-inch-wide round cookie cutter, cut rounds out and transfer to greased baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 20-22 minutes or until bottoms of cookies look golden. Remove from oven. In a shallow bowl combine theremaining sugar and cinnamon. While the cookies are still warm, dredge through the cinnamon and sugar. Once cool, store cookies in an airtight container for up to 7 days.