Mexican Shortbread Food

MEXICAN SHORTBREAD COOKIES (OJARASCAS)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Measure ¼ cup of water in a measuring glass. Add anise extract. Stir to combine and set aside.
• Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter, shortening, sugar, and cinnamon together on medium speed for about 2 minutes.
• Turn your mixer to low speed, then starting and ending with the flour, alternately add 1 cup of flour, half of the anise water, 1 cup of flour, and the remaining anise water. The dough will begin to pull away from the sides, but if the dough is still sticky, add more flour ½ cup at a time. Do not overmix or add too much flour or your dough will be tough and crumbly.
• Using your hands, shape 1 inch balls of dough and transfer to a baking sheet. Using the bottom of a cup or another flat surface, gently press on top of each ball to slightly flatten.
• Bake for 12 to 20 minutes, or until the cookies turn slightly brown on the edges.
• In a small bowl, add 3 teaspoons of cinnamon to 1 cup of sugar and stir to combine. Once you remove the cookies from the oven, let them cool slightly so you can pick them up (you want them to be warm though) and toss in the cinnamon sugar mixture. Transfer to parchment paper to cool completely.
• Store in an airtight container for up to one week.

MEXICAN SHORTBREAD

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
• Cream margarine and sugar together in bowl. Stir in flour, cornmeal, cinnamon and salt. Pat dough into 8-inch pie pan. Bake until golden, about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt chocolates with milk in double boiler. Stir until smooth.
• When shortbread is done, immediately score into 8 sections with knife while shortbread is still hot.
• Drizzle melted chocolate on top, allow to cool before cutting into wedges.

PAN DE POLVO (MEXICAN SHORTBREAD)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Cut shortening into flour until mixture resemble coarse corn meal.
• Add hot cinnamon and 1/4 cup anise tea and kneed dough until smooth.
• This will take a while.
• Roll dough into 1 inch diameter logs about 12 inch long.
• Cut logs into 1/4 in thick circles.
• Place close together on cookie sheet, but not touching.
• They spread very little to not at all.
• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until bottom side of cookie become lightly golden brown, and when cookie is cut in half, it looks baked all the way through.
• Combine granulated sugar and ground cinnamon.
• While cookies are still hot, roll each one in sugar and cinnamon coating with a fork until well coated.
• Place the cookies on cooling rack and cool completely.

MEXICAN SHORTBREAD COOKIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread the almonds and the flour on separate baking sheets. Place both in the oven and bake until the almonds are toasted and the flour is a deep creamy color, about 12 to 15 minutes, stirring the flour and the almonds once. Set aside to cool completely.
• Place the almonds and the sugar in a food processor and process until the nuts are ground. Sift the flour with the salt and baking powder into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the almond mixture. Add the butter and shortening, working it in with your fingers until you have a crumbly dough.
• Press the dough together, flatten and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 2 hours.
• Butter a cookie sheet well. Unwrap the dough and place it on top of the plastic wrap; cover it with another sheet of plastic wrap. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough out between the sheets of plastic with quick, short movements until it is about 1/4 inch thick; it will be crumbly around the edges.
• Using a cookie cutter 2 inches in diameter, cut out as many cookies as you can. Transfer them to the cookie sheet with a spatula, being very careful or they will break apart. Gather up the remaining dough and roll out and cut out more cookies. Repeat until all of the dough has been used.
• Bake the cookies on the top rack of the oven until they are pale golden in color, about 10 to 15 minutes. Sift the confectioners' sugar over them and set them aside to cool before removing them from the cookie sheet. Store the cookies in an airtight container.

CHOCOLATE-ALMOND SHORTBREAD BARS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch-square metal baking pan, then line with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on all 4 sides. Pulse the flour, almonds, cocoa powder, cinnamon, salt and cayenne, if using, in a food processor until the almonds are finely ground.
• Beat the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add the flour mixture and beat until just combined (the dough will be crumbly). Press the dough into the bottom of the prepared pan (you can cover the dough with plastic wrap and use the bottom of a measuring cup to even it out).
• Prick the dough all over with a fork, then use a sharp knife to cut it into 18 strips. Top with almonds, lightly pressing them in. Sprinkle with the raw sugar. Refrigerate until the dough is firm, about 10 minutes.
• Bake until the shortbread is slightly puffed and firm, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and immediately retrace the strips with a knife; cool completely in the pan on a rack. Lift up the parchment paper to remove the shortbread from the pan, then separate into bars. Store in an airtight container up to 1 week.

MEXICAN CHOCOLATE AND PEPITA SHORTBREAD STARS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Grind pepitas in coffee grinder or blender until coarsely ground. Set aside. Stir chocolate in top of double boiler set over simmering water until melted and smooth. Transfer chocolate to large bowl. Cool slightly.
• Add butter, 1/2 cup sugar, ground cinnamon and salt to melted chocolate. Using electric mixer, beat until well blended. Add flour and ground pepitas and stir until just blended.
• Roll out dough on floured surface to -inch thickness. Using 3-inch star cookie cutter dipped into flour, cut out cookies. Transfer cookies to ungreased baking sheets, spacing 1 inch apart. Reroll dough scraps; cut out additional cookies and place on baking sheets. Brush cookies with egg white; sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar. Bake cookies until just firm to touch, about 18 minutes. Cool 5 minutes on baking sheets. Transfer to rack; cool.