Biscochitos: Traditional New Mexican Cookies

My love of New Mexican food is no secret. I try to eat all of the chiles (New Mexico's state vegetable) each time I visit, and my recent trip was no exception. I enjoyed a delicious green chile cheeseburger (well earned after a long strenuous hike in this summer's heat) and made an elote corn casserole with green chiles for a vegetarian dinner party. I've shared my love for New Mexican Hatch chiles often here, including when I took a local cooking class last year and even when I added them to apple pie. 

But I haven't talked about the traditional New Mexican cookies called Biscochitos, which also happen to be the official New Mexico state cookie... until now. 

Biscochitos (also spelled Bizcochitos) are most popular around the holidays, but they are also essential for other celebrations such as weddings, graduations and anniversaries. New Mexico True says these cookies are so popular at Christmas that in December, biscochitos comprise maybe 30% of the diet of the average New Mexican!

I've only ever eaten purchased biscochitos in my previous trips to Santa Fe, but when I was there last month and saw that Santa Fe Biscochito Company was offering biscochito ice cream sandwiches on National Ice Cream Day, I convinced my sister and brother-in-law that a trip to the busy downtown Plaza on a hot Sunday would be worth it. I wasn't wrong! 

The gentleman working the booth recommended spoons to tackle this amazing dessert, and he was definitely spot on. 

I also thought it was a nice touch that their cookies had a Zia imprinted on them. The Zia sun symbol is New Mexico's distinctive insignia which originated with the Indians of Zia Pueblo in ancient times. It represents four cardinal directions, the four seasons of the year, the four periods of each day (morning, noon, evening, night) and the four seasons of life (childhood, youth, middle age and old age). The center of the sun symbol stands for life itself. 

These ice cream cookie sandwiches not only had two delicious biscochito cookies but vanilla ice cream with crushed biscochitos inside. They were amazing!

When I returned home, I set about to make these cookies from scratch so that I can have them anytime I want.

Ingredients of Biscochitos

The creations resemble a shortbread cookie and have a unique flavor twist. These cookies are anise-scented with crushed anise seeds, which you can do with a mortar and pestle or a spice grinder. Anise seed tastes similar to star anise, fennel, licorice, and tarragon. It can be tricky to find outside of the Southwest, but it is the defining flavor of this cookie so look for it online if you can't find it in your local store. 

The anise flavor is different because it adds a savory element to these cookies, but what makes them even more unique is their melt-in-your-mouth texture, which comes from the use of lard rather than butter. I know, I know. Lard?! Hear me out. I don't typically use lard in baking (not even in pie crust), but it's traditional in this recipe so I wanted to try it, and I was glad I did. It provides a tasty exterior crunch, crumbly texture, buttery flavor and it's easy to find in your local grocery store (it will be by the cooking oils and shortening). 

If you are absolutely opposed to using lard, you can substitute butter or shortening, but the texture just won't be the same as the traditional cookie. 

There are a lot of variations on this recipe, including adding orange zest, vanilla and brandy. New Mexico is one of the oldest wine producing regions in the U.S. so it makes sense they incorporate brandy (a liquor produced by distilling wine) in this special cookie. It's not completely necessary so if you need to omit it, you can add vanilla instead. 

These cookies are finished in cinnamon sugar which helps add a touch of sweetness since the cookies themselves aren't really that sweet.

How to Make Biscochitos

These cookies are very easy to make, but there are a few things you should know. First, the dough will be very crumbly and more like a pie crust dough than a normal cookie dough.

You'll first work it with your hands on a floured surface just like you would a pie crust, and as you do so, the lard and dry ingredients will become incorporated. 

The dough needs to rest wrapped in plastic in the refrigerator, and the amount of time is also something that varies in recipes. I saw resting times of anywhere from 15 minutes to overnight. I went with 30 minutes, and I thought that was just right. 

When you remove the dough from the fridge, cut it in half with a bench scraper so you have two pieces to work with. 

Then, roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thickness.

Use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Stars would be fun for the holidays!

Place on a parchment paper or Silpat-lined baking sheet and bake in a 350 degree F oven for about 15 minutes. I set my timer for 10 minutes and then added on a few minutes at a time until they were slightly browned around the edges and done. 

Sprinkle the cookies with cinnamon sugar and let them cool on the sheet pans. If you try to take them off before then, they may crumble on you.  

Once the cookies have cooled for 10 minutes, they will be easier to handle, and you can dunk the bottoms in the cinnamon sugar so that they are completely coated. 

Allow to completely cool, and enjoy. 

New Mexicans enjoy them with hot chocolate (even better if there's chile in that chocolate mix!) but a glass of cold milk works too. Of course, we already know how great these are as ice cream cookie sandwiches (extra points if you make homemade vanilla ice cream and add crumbled biscochitos to it!) but you could also make cookie sandwiches filled with dulce de leche or chocolate ganache. 

Biscochitos

Scroll down for a printable version of this recipe

Yields: 2 dozen cookies

Prep time: 15 minutes

Inactive time; 30 minutes

Cook time: 15 minutes

Total time: 1 hour

For the cookies:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons crushed anise seed

1 1/4 cups lard

3/4 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 Tablespoon brandy

For the topping:

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk in the crushed anise seed.

2. In a the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the lard and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and brandy and beat to combine.

3. Gradually mix in the flour mixture just until the dry ingredients are combined. 

4. Using your hands, work the dough into a ball. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate dough for at least 30 minutes.

5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat.

6. In a small bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon for the topping.

7. Take the chilled dough and separate it into half. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Cut out cookies. Cookie scraps can be rolled and cut again.

8. Place cookies on lined baking sheet and bake until just barely golden and set, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of cinnamon sugar on top of the cookies. 

9. Allow the cookies to cool for 10 minutes on the pan. Then, carefully dip the bottoms of the cookies into the cinnamon sugar. Cool completely. 

These cookies store well so once they are cooled, put them in an air-tight container and store at room temperature for up to a week. You could also make the dough ahead of time and keep it frozen for up to a month. Just thaw in the refrigerator when you are ready to use.

If you want to hone your baking skills this fall, don't miss The Chopping Block's upcoming baking and pastry classes:

• Hands-On Artisanal Breads Boot Camp Saturday, September 9 10am
• Hands-On Gluten-Free Baking and Pastry Friday, September 15 11am
• Hands-On How to Bake Bread Saturday, September 23 11am
• Hands-On Pastry Boot Camp: Modern European Desserts Saturday, October 7 9am
• Hands-On Pie and Tart Boot Camp: Fall Menu Saturday, October 14 10am
• Hands-On Cupcake Boot Camp: Fall Menu Saturday, October 28 10am