You Say Mexican Wedding Cookies, I Say Polvorones

I had never heard the name Mexican Wedding Cookies.

Ever.

I was born and raised in Mexico City. I lived there all my life until I married my husband, another Mexican, and moved to the U.S.

There were no Mexican Wedding Cookies at our Mexican wedding (though there were a ton of roosters doing their Cock a Doodle Do thing next door, which made it hard for us to say our vows real loud…). Nor were there any of those cookies, at any wedding in Mexico that I have ever attended. None.

The first time I heard the name Mexican Wedding Cookie was once we moved to Washington D.C. Since then, I have been asked about them continuously. What’s more, once I started my blog, I began to receive a lot of requests, via lovely emails, for their recipe.

It took me a while to realize that those Mexican Wedding Cookies, so liked this side of the border, are what I love and know as Polvorones. One of Mexico’s most popular treats, consumed on an every day basis, and found in just about every Panaderí­a (bakery) and any grocery store throughout the whole country.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 1
The name Polvorón seems to come from the word Polvo, which translates to dust or powder. Maybe because these cookies break into the finest of crumbs the moment they touch your mouth. And as you take a bite, they seem to melt and disappear.

They come in many flavors: plain, pecan, peanut, vanilla, cinnamon and even chocolate, to name some. I go for pecans.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 2
Since the cookie is so light, pecans add a nice and nutty depth of flavor, as well as an extra crunch.

Just grind the pecans using a food processor or blender. You can also chop them finely. My mother has an old fashioned nut grinder, which looks like a small mill or molino. It is a real find. I should have convinced her to give it to me as a wedding gift, now that we are talking about weddings….

Whichever way you decide to finely chop or grind them, mix them with the confectioners’s sugar.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 3
It is the addition of this kind of sugar which gives these cookies that airy quality and that peculiar light sweet taste.

They are similar to shortbread cookies, and as such, can be made in a bowl and mixed with your hands. Aside from being a quick and fun method, it is practical in a busy kitchen. Very few things to wash…

So grab a large mixing bowl and stir in the flour and salt. Cut your cold butter into small chunks and spoon in the vegetable shortening in teaspoon amounts.

Mexican Wed 4ding Cookies
Dive in with your hands, and work in the butter and vegetable shortening into the flour with your fingers.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 5
Its therapeutic.

In no time, you will get this nice flaky crumbly dough.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 6
Add in the sugar and pecan mixture. Work it in…

Mexican Wedding Cookies 7
Crack an egg. Mix it in. It will help the dough come together.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 8
Knead the dough until you can turn it into a ball. Don’t overwork the dough. You know that you need to stop as soon as you can turn it into a ball. No need to refrigerate if you stopped in time.

You know you overworked the dough if it becomes very, very greasy. The warmth of your hands will do that if work the dough for too long.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 9
Start making the cookies by grabbing small amounts of the dough and making 1 to 1 1/2″ balls. If you over worked the dough, your hands will be too greasy and it will be hard to make the balls. If that is the case, just place the dough in the refrigerator, covered, for 15 minutes… No worries, that will fix it.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 10
Place the balls on a buttered baking sheet, and gently tap each ball as you lay them out.

Super easy! Kids can do this with you.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 11
Once you are done rolling out enough  cookies to fill a baking sheet or tray, place them into the oven for about 15 minutes.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 12
They will come out all golden and delicious.

See that one that looks a bit burned and not so happy?  That’s because I overworked the dough in that single ball to show you what it would look like.

That’s why its good to know when to stop…

Mexican Wedding Cookies 13
Once out, dust them with extra confectioners’ sugar. The more, the better. Go ahead, go wild and dust until you have had enough… These cookies can take it because the dough is barely sweet and they are meant to be showered in that extra sugar.

Mexican Wedding Cookies 14

In Mexico, you can find them as the original Spanish cookies (Spaniards are to blame you know, they are the ones who brought them to Mexico), which are flatter, bigger and wider. But you can also find them in some small artisanal shops, in that smaller ball shape all wrapped in beautiful thin colored wrapping paper, with the ends twisted. As if they were little candies, or gifts, to unwrap.

Polvorones are deceiving.  They look hard on the outside. But go ahead and take a bite.

You may understand, like I recently did, why they have been called Mexican Wedding Cookies here in the U.S.

That’s how special they are.

Print Recipe
4.20 from 5 votes

Mexican Wedding Cookies

I had never heard the name Mexican Wedding Cookies. Ever. I was born and raised in Mexico City. I lived there all my life until I married my husband, another Mexican, and moved to the U.S. There were no Mexican Wedding Cookies at our Mexican wedding (though there were a ton of roosters doing their Cock a Doodle Do thing next door, which made it hard for us to say our vows real loud…). Nor were there any of those cookies, at any wedding in Mexico that I have ever attended. None.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: cookies, Dessert, pati's mexican table, pecans, Recipe
Servings: 30 cookies
Author: Pati Jinich

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter cut into chunks
  • 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
  • 1/2 cup pecans grounded or finely chopped
  • 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar plus more to dust
  • 1 egg

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Using a food processor, blender, nut mill or knife, finely chop the pecans. Add the powdered sugar to the processor or blender (if that's what you used) and grind or chop. If done by hand, just mix together.
  • Mix the flour and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Drop in the chunks of butter and the vegetable shortening in teaspoon amounts. Begin to mix with your hands, until the butter and vegetable shortening are mixed in with the flour and salt. The mixture will turn into a coarse dough, with chunks of butter and shortening mixed throughout.
  • Add in the sugar and pecan mixture and work it all in. Crack the egg into the mixture thoroughly combine, using your hands. In less than a minute, the dough should be soft and malleable enough to be turned into a ball. Don't knead more than necessary, you just want it to come together into a homogeneous mass.
  • Butter a large cookie sheet. One by one, make small balls of dough with the palms of your hands. The dough ball should be between 1 and 1 1/2 inches wide. Place them on a baking sheet with about 1 inch in between the dough balls. Bake them for about 15 to 16 minutes, until they have a golden brown color.
  • Dust extra confectioners sugar over the top of the cookies and eat and serve.

Notes

Polvorones

Fava Bean Soup: Time to go Mainstream!

When I think about my mother, I think about her fava bean soup (fine, and a couple other things too…). That’s how strong an impact that soup has had on me.

But not many people are wild about favas, habas in Spanish. Different from pasta or potatoes, Favas haven’t gone mainstream.

Okay. I can see why.

First, the fact that they come in many forms can be confusing (fresh in their pod, fresh out of the pod, dried with their skin on, or dried and peeled). Also, the ways to cook them in their different forms haven’t been widely publicized. On top of that, favas have a strong flavor that can be overpowering, and to some, hard to bear.

Now, bear with me here. If you know what form of favas to get for which kind of dish, the confusion is almost gone. With the right recipe, the confusion evaporates further and their overpowering flavor is tamed. Thus… beloved cooks, favas become what they must: filling, rich, wholesome and deliciously intense.

dried and peeled favas

Since we are almost in the middle of winter, and I started talking about my mother’s soup, let’s consider dried favas which can be found year round and store forever in your pantry (fresh ones are found from Spring to Summer).

You can find them with shells on, like these on top. They are pretty, but you need to soak them, cook them and peel them. Quoting my mother: “Ay no Pati, eso de pelar una por una es una monserga” (translates to something like: peeling them one by one is a pain).

If you are looking for a relaxing therapy that will take hours, that’s fine. If you are not, go for the already peeled dried favas, like the ones below. They don’t look as pretty, but have more personality.

dried favas skin on
To cook: Soak them in cold water anywhere from 2 to 12 hours. If you forgot to soak them, they will take a bit longer to cook, that’s all.

soaking favas
Now, drain them and place them in a pot with chicken broth and let them simmer, with the cover ajar, for about 50 to 55 minutes. They will be soft, thoroughly cooked and coming apart. That’s what you want.

See the broth? Its thick and lightly hay colored. Soothing looking already…

cooked fava beans
Next step, seasoning base: tomatoes, onion and garlic. My mom makes a rustic kind of soup. She chops the tomatoes, onion and garlic, cooks them with a little oil for 5 minutes and adds it to the cooked fava beans and broth.

I prefer a more smooth version of the soup because:
a) It lets me trick my monsters into eating the beans.
b) It looks more fancy if I want to serve it to guests.
c) With this cold, I find it much more comforting.
d) I like creamy things, so let me indulge myself.

So, I puree the fava beans with the broth once they are ready.

pureed fava beans
As for the seasoning base, with the blender in working mode, I puree the tomatoes with the onion and the garlic too….

tomatoes garlic onion
Cook that nice and thick puree over medium high heat for 5 or 6 minutes, until it thickens and darkens its color. Which means that the ingredients have seasoned and transformed from having a raw flavor to a cooked one.

tomato puree
Pour the fava bean and chicken broth puree right on top of that seasoned tomato base. Add salt, pepper, a pinch of cumin and let it all come together and season for about 10 more minutes.

Meanwhile, slice some bolillos, teleras or baguettes.

slicing baguette
Brush them with a light coat of olive oil, on both sides, if you must. Toast them until tanned and crispy.

brushing baguette
With the soup seasoned and thickened, you are ready to pour it into a bowl.

serving soup
Lay a piece of toast right on top…

place bread on soup
Crown it with some Pasilla chile crisps if you want an extra layer of flavorful crunch (see recipe below).

garnish with pasilla crisps
And jump in.

fava bean soup
Just watch as that piece of toast jumps in along with me.

fava bean soup
And if this blog had sound you would have heard the toast crack in the midst of that fava bean bath…

fava bean soup
And yes it is fabulous! What are you waiting for?

Print Recipe
4.50 from 2 votes

Fava Bean Soup with Crunch Toasts and Pasilla Crisps

When I think about my mother, I think about her fava bean soup (fine, and a couple other things too…). That’s how strong an impact that soup has had on me. But not many people are wild about favas, habas in SpanishDifferent from pasta or potatoes, Favas haven’t gone mainstream.
Prep Time2 hours
Cook Time1 hour
Course: Soup
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: bolillo, chicken broth, cumin, fava beans, garlic, onion, pasilla, pati's mexican table, Tomatoes
Servings: 6 servings
Author: Pati Jinich

Ingredients

  • 1 pound fava beans peeled and dried
  • 12 cups chicken broth
  • 1 pound ripe Roma tomatoes quartered
  • 1/2 cup white onion roughly chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves peeled
  • 3 tablespoons safflower oil corn or vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
  • Pinch of cumin
  • 2 pasilla chiles stemmed, seeded, and cut into small strips and quickly fried
  • 6 diagonal slices of bolillo telera or baguette, lightly brushed with oil and toasted
  • Olive oil to brush over the toast

Instructions

  • In a bowl, cover the fava beans with cold water and let them soak anywhere from 2 hours to overnight. Drain. Place the lima beans and chicken broth in a large soup pot set over medium heat. Let it come to a medium simmer with the lid ajar and cook until the beans are thoroughly cooked and tender, about 50 to 55 minutes. Turn off the heat and let them cool a little bit. Puree in batches in the blender. Place in a container or a large bowl.
  • Meanwhile, puree the tomatoes along with the onion and garlic until smooth. In a large soup pot, heat 3 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Once it is hot, but not smoking, pour in the tomato puree. Let it cook, stirring occasionally, until it deepens in color and thickens, about 5 to 6 minutes. Pour in the lime bean puree. Sprinkle the salt and black pepper, and continue cooking for about 8 to 10 minutes, until all of the flavors have combined.
  • Ladle the soup in individual bowls. Garnish with a piece of toast, brushed with olive oil, and sprinkle some crunchy chile strips on top.
  • Note: To make the chile crisps, quickly fry the chile pieces in a saute pan with 1/4" oil set over medium heat. Once oil is hot but not smoking, quickly fry the crisps, literally 2 seconds, remove and place on a plate covered with paper towel.

Notes

Sopa de Habas con Pan Tostado y Chile Pasilla