Bizcochitos are delicate anise-flavored sugar cookies dipped in cinnamon sugar. They are made and served throughout New Mexico. Like so many traditional dishes, there are countless versions of bizcochitos – some claim lard is essential, others turn to butter to make these cookies crisp and flavorful. See options in the recipe below and make bizcochitos of your own.
I found one old recipe that mentioned home-ground flour as a key ingredient – so I use whole wheat pastry flour to give my bizcochitos a deeper flavor. All purpose flour works just fine, too.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Chilling Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Yield: About 4 dozen cookies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup butter or lard
- 1 3/4 cup sugar, divided
- 1 1/2 tsp. anise seeds
- 1 egg
- 2 Tbsp. brandy or tequila (optional)
- 3 cup all purpose or whole wheat pastry flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
Preparation:
- Cream butter or lard and 3/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy looking. Meanwhile, crush the anise seeds in a mortar and pestle or use the back of a small but heavy frying pan.
- Add crushed anise seed, egg, and brandy to dough and mix to combine thoroughly. Add flour, baking powder, and salt and stir to combine.
- Divide two in half and pat each half into a 1-inch-thick disk. Wrap dough in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes and up to overnight.
- In a medium bowl, combine remaining cup of sugar with cinnamon, Set near work area.
- Preheat oven to 300°F. Working with one disk of dough at a time, use plenty of flour to roll out dough to about 1/4-inch-thick. Use cookie cutters or a sharp paring knife to cut into shapes. Dip each cookie in the cinnamon sugar mixture and put cookies on a well greased baking sheet (or a baking sheet lined with parchment paper). Bake cookies for 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough. Store bizcochitos in tins for up to a week.
