• Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and 1 teaspoon of the canela or cinnamon in a medium bowl. Add the diced butter and combine with the flour with your fingers or a fork until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in ½ cup of the sugar. Add the milk, egg and vanilla and mix it into the flour in circular motions, scraping from the bottom and folding and kneading the dough. At first it will be sticky and lumpy, but as you continue to knead, it will become a little bit more elastic and malleable. Add more flour, a tablespoon at a time, if needed. Cover with a towel and let rest for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Preheat a comal, griddle, or skillet over low heat for 10 minutes. On a flat plate, combine the remaining ½ cup sugar and 1 teaspoon canela or cinnamon and set aside.
• Divide the dough into 16 even pieces. Roll them into balls, place them on a plate or baking sheet, and cover with a towel.
• Either using a tortilla press lined with 2 pieces of plastic (cut from supermarket produce bags is perfect), as if making tortillas, or lightly flouring your work surface and your rolling pin, press or roll out each ball into approximately 5-inch rounds about ⅛-inch thick. They gain volume and thicken as they cook.
• Lay the gordita on the preheated comal, griddle, or skillet and cook for about 5 to 6 minutes, until the bottom seems cooked and is golden brown and the gordita has slightly puffed and gained some volume. Flip and cook another 5 to 6 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the heat and dredge both sides in the cinnamon sugar. Repeat with the remaining gorditas and serve hot.
• Drizzle them with honey or maple syrup or serve them with fresh fruit or jam (I like peach jam or apple butter), sprinkle them with confectioners’ sugar, or spread them with Nutella.

Note:

• You can make the dough ahead, divide into the 16 balls, and set aside in the refrigerator for about 20 minutes or up to 3 days in a lidded container or sealed plastic bag. In fact, refrigerating them before helps them press or roll out more evenly.