Bizcochitos: A Christmas Cookie

A bizcochito is a Mexican cookie that is very similar to a shortbread cookie... with brandy! It is tailored according to customs and tastes brought from Hispanic cultures. I have only known this to be a Christmas cookie, but it goes well with any special occasion. This lens will not only explain how to make bizcochitos, it will add a little entertainment to the mix. Have fun and enjoy.

6 cups Sifted Flour (This means 6 cups of sifted flour NOT to sift 6 cups of flour)

3 teaspoons Baking Powder

1 teaspoon Salt

1 pound lard or butter

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 teaspoon anise seed

2 eggs

1/4 cup Brandy (or more)

1/4 cup Sugar (This is part of the sprinkled topping)

1 tablespoon Cinnamon (This is the other part of the sprinkled topping)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Pour 1/4 cup of Brandy into a glass and set aside. Get another glass and fill partially with Brandy. Take a nice drink.

Sift flour with baking powder and salt. This step can be confusing. Sift flour until you have 6 cups then add the salt and baking powder. You can sift again if you like (preferred). Set aside.

Take another nice warm drink.

Cream shortening with sugar and anise seed using an electric mixer until nice and smooth.

Try not to lick the beaters. But if you really must taste it at this point, turn off the mixer first. I will tell you now, it doesn't taste yummy yet. Be Patient.

Set shortening mixture aside for a brief moment.

Beat eggs until nice and fluffy. Add eggs to shortening mixture and blend well. (Yes, you do have to do this separate. Do NOT add eggs to the mixture until they are beat or the cookies will not turn out right.)

By this point, you should have a gooey mess in your mixer and are probably singing to yourself. This is exactly how it should be.

Pour another glass of Brandy and take another nice long drink.

Add flour mixture and Brandy to the mix and blend well. This may seem like a never ending process. Add the flour in slowly. Talk to the mixture and tell it that everything will be fine. That it will be happy if it just combines.

Talking to the dough helps. Be wary if the dough talks back. If it does, put down the glass.

Add enough Brandy to form a stiff ball. Pour any extra Brandy into your mouth.

Knead dough a little bit and roll out flat. About 1/4 inch works well. Don't worry if the dough is uneven in height. It just shows that you made it by hand and not from the local bakery. (Do they even sell Bizcochitos in the local bakery?)

Use cookie cutters of your choice to make shapes in the dough. Re-roll the dough for more cookies. Repeat until there is not enough dough left or until you can tell what you are doing.

Pour another glass to drink.

Sprinkle (or dust) the top of each cookie with the cinnamon sugar mixture. I use a salt shaker filled with the cinnamon sugar mix to sprinkle.

Bake in oven at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until lightly browned. This is the perfect time to have another drink.

Remove cookies from sheet immediately so the bottoms do not burn.

Resist eating one until they have cooled down. Have another drink if you must. DON'T FORGET TO TURN OFF THE OVEN!

Here are some cookie cutters from Amazon. Or some rolling pins. Oh yeah, I need to get more cookie cutters, I need more shapes.

Hope you enjoyed this lens and turned out some really good cookies. Let me know how you did and what you think.