Matthew & Samuel Baca’s Recounting
of
The Baca Family Recipe
for Biscochitos
Ingredients:
·
6 cups all purpose flour.
·
3 teaspoons baking powder.
·
1 teaspoon salt.
·
3 teaspoons anise seeds. (Use “Bueno” brand,
found in
the grocery section of Mexican food spices hanging in
cellophane bags; it is about 1/3 the cost of the anise
found in the conventional spice section of your grocery store.)
·
2 ½ cups shortening.
·
2 eggs.
·
1 ½ cups sugar.
·
1 small glass (»4
oz.) of red wine.
·
1/8 cup of sugar with a tablespoon or two of cinnamon
mixed in.
Spread this on the bottom of a pie tin and use to coat the face
of each biscochito before placing on the cookie sheet for
baking (see instructions below).
1.
In a mixing bowl, blend and beat the shortening and sugar
together.
2.
Add eggs to mixing bowl & beat until fluffy (it really gets
fluffy).
3.
Grind anise seeds into a powder using a mortar and
pedestal or an electric blender. Add the ground anise seeds
to the mixture now to optimize the ultimate distribution
into the dough.
4.
In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt.
5.
Slowly add and beat the dry ingredients (from step four)
into the mixing bowl dough.
6.
Add wine to mixture.
7.
Roll out the dough and cut into squares or rectangles 1 ½
to 2 inches on the side. After cutting, shape and form the
biscochitos as indicated in the drawings below.
8.
Before placing on cookie sheet for baking, place each
biscochito face down on the mixture of sugar and cinnamon
to coat. Then place biscochito face up on cookie sheet and
bake.
Bake at
350 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Makes about 50 cookies.
How to Cut and Shape a Biscochito
1.
Roll out the dough and cut into pieces about 2 inches on each
side.
2.
Cut about six slits on one side, about one inch long.
3.
Starting with the outermost slits, gently bend and shape the
cut strips so that they fan away from each other. Repeat with
each strip until you get to the center of the cookie.
4. Take the biscochito, drop it face down into the sugar and
cinnamon mixture to coat the face, and bake.
History:
This recipe was handed down in our family by oral tradition
until the 1940’s when Matthew and Sam’s Great-Grandma
Filomena’s recipes were written down.
The original recipe for biscochitos called for lard rather than
shortening. The recipe we offer here uses vegetable shortening
for dietary health reasons rather than taste. Many families,
especially in certain parts of New Mexico, still prefer the
traditional lard and this does provide a different, and many
claim better, taste.
In the southern part of New Mexico, where Matthew and
Sam’s mother comes from, the term used for this cookie is
“biscocho” rather than “biscochito.” Though a minor difference,
since the recipe is virtually identical, the use of the diminutive
form of the word is a great source of kidding and head shaking
for people from the northern versus the southern Hispanic
traditions of New Mexico.
Before the railroad came to New Mexico it is likely that
biscochitos were made in small batches and considered a great
delicacy. The availability, and hence price of anise, cinnamon,
and sugar were dictated by the supplies provided via the Camino
Real caravans from Chihuahua, and later the Missouri traders on
the Santa Fe Trail.
One hundred and fifty years ago our ancestors were probably
fortunate to be able to afford to bake a few dozen of these
cookies each year. This may be one of the reasons why even
today they are offered in an almost ritualistic presentation to
guests who visit during the Christmas season. In addition to
biscochitos, guests are also offered a glass of red wine.
Sometimes the uncles and dads will gravitate to one corner
of the kitchen where they can be seen tossing their heads back
(in recent years young Baca women have successfully intruded
into this formerly male custom).
The mixing of the dough and creation of each biscochito,
one at a time, is typically done by a gathering of many members
of an extended family at one time. It is a time for socializing,
catching up on the latest family news and gossip, and taking
stock of how much all the nephews, nieces, and grandchildren
are growing. The baking of biscochitos is one of the hallmarks
of the start of the Christmas season and will usually coincide
with the beginning of Advent. In New Mexico this custom and
the familial solidarity and celebration it represents preceded
the arrival of the automobile, the railroad, and the Christmas
tree. It robustly continues today even though our principal
language is English and we make our livings working at computer
keyboards rather than the rolling pin or the plow.
The biscochito is as simple as a sweet treat to enjoy with
friends and family. The biscochito is as important as the talking
and laughter of four generations sitting around the table on a
Saturday morning in December. The talking, laughter, and story
telling often recall other mornings and earlier generations and is
both a celebration and an affirmation. In the mixing, shaping,
baking, and sharing of this sweet biscuit we consent to and
ensure those glad memories of past holidays remembered
through our grandparents’ stories. With the ease of a caress
for the new baby, and the intensity of an embrace for a sibling
too long away, we affirm that this recipe will be understood
when our children remember the stories we tell them today.
Patrick Baca, Jr. |