This will put you in a Cinco de Mayo baking mood: traditional Puerquitos, a soft, light,  and slightly cinnamon spiced sugar cookie!  The Mexican cookie making video needs no translation: it’s in the universal language of  baking love. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oh-Wro-uK-E . “Necessity is the mother of invention”: I needed a pig shaped cookie cutter and didn’t want to take the time to cross the bridge to La Roux, our local well stocked (Williams Sonoma).  The baker in the video made a cut-out for her Piggy Cookies; I followed suit since “imitation is the highest form of flattery!”  Using a small paring knife worked better than a toothpick to trace around the edges.  A cookie cutter dipped in powdered sugar would have been easier.  Still  the results were effective!

Puerquitos – traditional Mexican Piggy Cookies – makes 16 four inch cookies

Ingredients:

1/4 cup water

1/2 cup (5 oz.) firmly packed dark brown sugar

2 tablespoons honey

1/2 cup (4oz.) unsalted butter, cut into 8 – 12 pieces

2 cups (12 oz.) GF flour mix (yours, ours, or Trader Joe’s)

1/4 cup (1.25 oz.) chestnut flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon xantham gum

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1 large egg

Directions:

1.  In a medium sauce pan combine the water and brown sugar and boil for 5 minutes or so, until the sugar has melted and the mixture has made a syrup. Stir in the honey.

2.  Add the butter, stir until it’s melted.

3.  In a medium mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients.  Whisk to blend.

4.  Add the dry ingredients to the butter/sugar mixture.  Stir to blend evenly.  Add the egg, stir again to blend evenly.

5.  Line a bowl large enough to hold the batter with 2 sheets of plastic wrap.  Pour the batter into the bowl. Draw the corners and edges of the plastic wrap together, forcing the air out and twist to form a seal. Refrigerate the dough for 2 hours – two days.

6.  Preheat the oven to 375F; line a baking sheet with parchment paper

7.  Cut the dough in half, putting one half back into the ‘frige.  Roll the other out on a GF floured surface to 1/4 inch thickness.  If the dough is too sticky, knead in a little extra flour.  Using a pig shaped cookie cutter, cut out shapes and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Bake for 10 minutes or until the cookies have puffed and are medium brown. Note: the edges of the cookies will be more discreet if you chill the cut out cookie dough for 5-10 minutes before baking.

8.  Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool completely before sifting with confectioners’ sugar. It’s OK to sift on the sugar whilst the cookies are still a little warm on the cookie sheet….

Bonne Cinco de Mayo!

Melting the sugar in the water

Adding the honey

Stirring the butter to melt

Measuring the dry ingredients

Whisking to blend

Stirring the egg into the sugar butter mixture

Incorporating the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients

Bowl prepared with plastic wrap

Turning the dough into the bowl

Gathering the edges of the wrap

Twisted into a bundle

Found the outline of a pig on line

Traced onto printer paper

Cut out my pig after adjusting the size

Chilled dough out of the ‘frige where it had been for 12 hours

Tracing the cut out which I’d transfered to a sheet of paper board

Knife edged cuts were prettier than those “cut” with a toothpick

Sifting on the powdered sugar

Cinco de Mayo cookies ready to serve!