The Almond Polvorones or the Mexican wedding cookies

In the US these shortbreads are known as the Mexican wedding cookies, but the funny thing is that actually, in Mexico they aren’t served much at weddings! The most popular polvorones in Mexico, are the orange or almond flavored ones; but of course there are many different delicious ways to make them...

If you do not want to use lard in this recipe, it can be replaced by vegetable shortening, or butter, or a combination of the two, but usually they are made with pork lard in Mexico… these cookies are sometimes called “mantecados” or “made with lard” as well to illustrate this point! You can make these cookies with the almonds completely reduced to a powder, or just chopped which will give the cookies a pleasant, crunchy texture.

| Yield: Many cookies | Preparation: | Baking time: | Total time: | | by:






Recipe for the Almond Polvorones


Ingredients

* 100 ground and toasted almonds
* 3 cups sugar
* some icing sugar
* 1 tablespoon cinnamon
* 4 cups flour
* 2 cups lard

Preparation

1) Pour the flour in a large frying pan and flatten it to a uniform layer; turn the heat on, to medium setting. Wait a few minutes, until the burner is hot, then mix the flour using a wooden spoon until the flour’s color browns slightly (about seven minutes) remove from the burner. Pour this browned flour over a flat working surface and shape it like a little mountain and in the center, pour the softened lard, the sugar, the ground almonds, the cinnamon. Knead this to a dough until smooth.


2) Shape dough balls about the size of a walnut and flatten to form thick round or oval cookies


3) Preheat the oven to 300 ˚F. Arrange these uncooked mexican shortbread cookies on a baking sheet, one next to the other. Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes until slightly browned and cooked; baking time can vary depending on your oven.


Take out of the oven and let them cool down on the tray; sprinkle the polvorones with the icing sugar.






easy mexican recipes