How to Make Polvorón
In Spain, polvorón is a type of crumbly sweet that is covered with confectioner's sugar and is traditionally made and consumed during the Christmas season. The southern Spanish region of Andalucía and the city of Sevilla are particularly known for their production of polvorones. These shortbread confections have few ingredients, but one of those ingredients is typically pig lard. Polvorones can be made vegetarian, however, by using vegetable shortening or olive oil instead of the lard. Does this Spark an idea?
Things You'll Need
- 3 cups flour plus extra for dusting the work surface
- 1 cup lard, vegetable shortening or olive oil
- 1 cup ground almonds
- 1 cup confectioner's sugar plus extra for decoration
- Zest of one lemon
- 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 to 2 tbsp. anisette liqueur
- Large bowl
- Wooden spoon
- Work surface
- Rolling pin
- Round cookie cutter or glass
- Parchment paper
- Baking sheet
- Spatula
- Wire cooling racks
- Medium bowl
- Serving trays
Instructions
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1
Preheat the oven to 350 F.
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2
Combine 3 cups flour; 1 cup lard, vegetable shortening or olive oil; 1 cup ground almonds; 1 cup confectioner's sugar; the zest of one lemon; 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon and 1 or 2 tbsp. anisette liqueur in a large bowl with a wooden spoon. Set the bowl aside and let rest for 20 minutes.
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3
Remove the dough from the bowl and turn it out onto a work surface such as a floured cutting board, bread board or clean kitchen counter. Knead the dough until it is well-combined and slightly elastic. Flour the rolling pin and the roll out the dough to a uniform 1-inch thickness. Cut round shapes in the dough with the cookie cutter or glass.
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4
Combine the scraps of extra dough, roll them out again and cut them out into circles. Repeat this as many times as there is dough left.
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5
Put all the dough rounds spaced about 1/2 inch apart onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Put the baking sheets in the oven and bake at 350 F for about 15 minutes or until the polvorones are slightly golden brown.
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6
Transfer the polvorones from the baking sheets to the wire cooling racks with the spatula. Let the polvorones cool completely.
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7
Put some confectioner's sugar in a medium bowl. Put one polvorón in the bowl and cover it completely with the sugar. Lightly knock the excess sugar off and put the polvorón on the serving tray. Repeat with the rest of the polvorones.
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Tips & Warnings
To make the ground almonds, grind whole peeled almonds using a food processor.
References
- Photo Credit Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images
