Cookbook’s today offer so many unique angles and specialties, it is with unabashed excitement each time I pause to unearth another treasure—-fresh from the bindery! Jeffrey Weiss is the author of this treat Charcuteria: The Soul of Spain (March, 2014). It is a 450 pound gorilla of a book—-filled with prose, interviews, recipes, gritty photography, and more tips and tricks than I have seen in some time.
The book’s forward is by James Beard Award laureate Jose Andres, stunning photos are by Nathan Rawlinson, and there are even some amusing illustrations drawn by Spanish born Sergioi Mora.
What is so special about this collection is the amazing trek that Jeffrey took to compile the contents of this cookbook. You see, Jeffrey was a recipient of ICEX’s prestigious Spanish Gastronomy Training Scholarship, which allowed him to travel throughout Spain, learning its regional cuisines from specialty chefs, and cooking everywhere from humble farms to swanky restaurants.
The book delves into the history and techniques behind authentic Spanish butchering and meat-curing. It features more than 100 comprehensive recipes, and truly “celebrates” this type of cuisine. Now, for those cookbook lovers who require everything to be outlined down to the tiniest detail of a grain of salt, this book is not for you. Jeffrey’s recipes offer a percentage, or ratio of meats and other ingredients to the other delicacies on the platter. It is relatively easy once you get the hang of it, and quite a creative way to communicate a recipe. It is forgiving. It is actually freeing for those of us who love to cook.
For those readers who enjoy actually doing the fermentation, smoking and drying, and grinding of meats, you are in luck. The book outlines all of this, and offers close up pictures to reinforce what the chefs are demonstrating. For those who would prefer to use this as a guide, and purchase your choice meats, you can easily do that as well. The book is very flexible for all types of cooks and that is a real treat. To break the presentation down to make it simple—follow Jeffrey’s five tips:
1) Select your Meats- Think about color, consistency, and texture in addition to the flavors
2) Select Complementary Cheeses- Strong and creamy—mild and hard.
3) Gather Condiments- From olive oil, to almonds, dried fruits, olives, marmalade, & membrillo- the guava paste eaten with Manchego.
4) Add Bread- such as Ciabatta with a crunchy texture.
5) Pair with Wines- Give thought to this and let the meats drive the decisions.
Sourcing the products can be a challenge, but once found you will have your “go to” resources to use at a moment’s notice. For those in Southern California, here are two suggestions: La Espanola- Harbor City (310) 539-0455 and Ole Spain Deli Shop- Santa Ana (714) 966-1087.
Jeffrey Weiss has set down roots in Monterey, CA and is the Executive Chef for Jeninni Kitchen+Wine Bar. We look forward to meeting up with him when we are there in Pacific Grove inmid-August! They open each evening for happy hour at 4:00 and dinner at 5:00 until close… Jeninni Kitchen+Wine Bar ~ 542 Lighthouse Ave, Pacific Grove, CA 93950 ~ 831) 920-2662 www.jeninni.com .
Agate, the Publisher of this fine cookbook, has kindly offered to share three recipes with us and also sub-recipes, if you will, for alternatives. Please enjoy exploring these recipes as a sampler of what is offered in this wonderful cookbook. This includes: BACALAO EN SALSA VERDE, BOLLO PREÑAO (a bagel dog), and PERUNILLAS (cookies).
Enjoy!
RECIPES
BACALAO EN SALSA VERDE
Of all of the Basque preparations for bacalao, this version is hands
down my favorite since it’s a great example of the New Basque cuisine
that swept through Basque kitchens in the 1970s and 1980s. Back then,
great chefs like Juan Mari Arzak and Pedro Subijana—guys who were
influenced by the nouvelle cuisine movement of France—put on events
akin to today’s pop-up restaurants with the goal of steering Basque
cooking away from its heavy, butter-fortified sauces in favor of lighter
preparations that were more ingredient driven.
This dish is a great example of what they were getting at. The original
salsa verde recipe for this dish calls for the same technique used to make
a classic velouté, essentially thickening fish fumet with a heavy roux
before finishing everything with chopped herbs.
By comparison, the updated version I learned from some Basque
friends features a cleaner and lighter sauce that lets the ingredients
do the talking. In this recipe, a little flour lightly thickens the sauce.
The flour binds the oil and water with the fish’s natural gelatin, which
is released using a swirling technique like the one used to make pil pil
sauce. As a result, the dish is really light and fresh, especially with the
addition of herbs and lemon. YIELD: 4 servings.
Ingredients:
FOR REHYDRATING AND
COOKING THE BACALAO:
2.2 pounds (1 kg) Bacalao
(see sub-recipe below), skin on
and cut into 4 large squares
W ater, to cover
1/4 cup (60 mL) extra virgin olive oil
All-purpose flour, as needed
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
FOR THE HERB SAUCE:
4 whole cloves garlic, peeled,
destemmed, and minced
Generous pinch kosher salt
1/4 cup (15 g) minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons (5 g) minced fresh chives
2 tablespoons (5 g) minced fresh chervil
FOR THE SALSA VERDE:
1 medium yellow onion, destemmed
and minced
Kosher salt, to taste
P inch red pepper flakes
20 littleneck clams, scrubbed
1/2 cup (120 mL) Spanish white wine,
such as Verdejo
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
TO REHYDRATE AND COOK THE BACALAO:
1 In a large mixing bowl, cover the Bacalao with the water. Soak in the
refrigerator for 1 day, changing the water at least twice during the
soaking period.
2 Remove the Bacalao from the water and pat it dry. Reserve 1/2 cup
(120 mL) of the soaking liquid. Set aside.
3 In a medium skillet over medium–high heat, warm the oil for 4 to 5
minutes, until just rippling. Line a plate with 2 to 3 paper towels and
set aside.
4 In a shallow bowl, season the flour with the salt and black pepper.
Dredge each of the pieces of Bacalao in the flour, shaking oâ any
excess flour.
5 Sear the Bacalao in the skillet for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until
golden brown. Remove from the heat. Remove the Bacalao pieces
from the skillet and place them on the lined plate to drain. Cover
with foil and set aside. Reserve the oil in the skillet.
TO MAKE THE HERB SAUCE:
1 In a mortar and pestle, crush together the garlic and salt to form an ajosal. If desired, you can finish the
ajosal in a food processor fitted with the “S” blade.
2 Add the parsley, chives, and chervil to the ajosal and continue crushing or processing until a rough green
paste forms. Drizzle in the reserved Bacalao soaking water and continue crushing or processing until the
paste becomes a somewhat thick sauce. Set aside.
TO MAKE THE SALSA VERDE AND THE FINISHED DISH:
1 Add the onions to the skillet and season them with the salt. Place the skillet over medium–high heat and
sweat the onions in the oil for 10 minutes, until they are soft but have not taken on color.
2 Add the red pepper flakes, clams, and wine to the skillet. Cover the pan and bring the liquid to a boil.
Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, covered, for 6 to 10 minutes, until the clams are just ready to open.
Remove from the heat.
3 Add the Bacalao and the Herb Sauce to the skillet. Begin whisking the sauce in the skillet, while at the same
time shaking and swirling the pan, until a creamy emulsion begins to form as with a pil pil sauce.
4 Transfer the clams and Bacalao to a serving platter. Add the lemon juice to the skillet. Taste and reseason
the sauce as necessary with the salt.
5 Pour the sauce over the clams and Bacalao. Top with the black pepper and lemon zest. Serve warm.
SUB-RECIPE: BACALAO
If there’s one cured food that can give the Ibérico pig a run for
its money in a Spanish popularity contest, it’s bacalao. Salted
cod has a long history in Spain, dating back almost 500 years
to a time when Basque whalers, who traditionally preserved
whale fat and flesh with salt, decided to try the same process
with cod. The process worked out well, and a Spanish culinary
star was born.
Bacalao’s place on Spanish dining tables was later solidified
when the Catholic Church declared it a favorite protein
substitute during meat fasting days and Lent. Since the
number of days that Spaniards were forbidden from eating
meat totaled almost half the calendar year, the bacalao trade
boomed on those days and the humble cod eventually became
a religious icon.
Not only was bacalao essential to trade and the sustenance
of nations, but the act of salting cod actually makes the
fish taste better by compacting it and changing its flavor
profile—a technique that also works well for other fish. As
Harold McGee points out in his book On Food and Cooking:
“Micrococcus bacteria generate flavor [in the salted fish] by
producing free amino acids and TMA; and oxygen breaks up
to half the very small amount of fatty substances into free
fatty acids and then into a range of smaller molecules that
also contribute to aroma.”
Sadly, according to the Seafood Watch Program at the
Monterey Bay Aquarium, stocks of Northwest Atlantic
cod (specifically Georges Bank cod) have been drastically
overfished, almost to the point of collapse. Fortunately, Gulf of
Maine and Northeast Atlantic cod stocks are still fairly strong.
Look for them, and specifically make sure that the fish was
caught with a hook and line, as opposed to trawling. Trawling is
a bad business that messes with marine habitats.
Lesson of the day: Protect the planet, amigos…safe fishing
means more delicious fishies for years to come.
Ingredients:
17½ ounces (500 g) Basic Salazón
(see sub-recipe below)
1 Cut the cod loins into 1-inch-thick (2.5-cm-thick) pieces. Weigh each piece to obtain a green weight; record
the weights for later.
2 Place the Basic Salazón in a small mixing bowl. Set aside.
3 Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the cod loin pieces on the baking sheet. Sprinkle both
sides of the pieces with about 1/2 of the salazón, pressing down hard to compact the cure into the cod. Cover
the bowl containing the remainder of the salazón and reserve.
4 Wrap the cod loin pieces in a layer of cheesecloth. Either attach a sanitized hook to one end of each piece or
tie butcher’s twine around each piece and make a loop for hanging.
5 Hang the cod loin pieces in a drying chamber with excellent airflow. The temperature should be set at 54°F
to 60°F (12°C to 16°C) and the relative humidity should be 80% to 85%. The loins should hang over a large
bowl to catch any water that drips from the fish, and the water that accumulates in the bowl should be
drained daily. Dry the loins in the chamber for 2 days.
6 Unwrap the cheesecloth from the loins and apply the remaining salazón to them. Rewrap the loins and
rehang them in the drying chamber for 1 day, until they have lost about 50% of their green weight (with
good airflow in the chamber, this will take about 1 day per inch (2.5 cm) of thickness on a loin).
7 Before using the Bacalao, you must soak the pieces in a few changes of water for 24 to 36 hours. Serve in
salads such as Esqueixada (see recipe on p. 173), or use in the Basque Bacalao recipes on pp. 124, 163, 165,
and 167.
Sub-recipe: BASIC SALAZÓN
Using a salazón is the most basic trick in the charcutier’s playbook:
It’s just a salt rub + meat + time. Pure salt can be a little harsh, though.
That’s why I use a little sugar in my salazón—for balance.
Much like the salmuera, the salazón serves as a preserving agent,
extracting water or blood while killing o‰ not-so-friendly bacteria
found on the surface of most meats. In addition, the salazón can play
a vital role in changing the texture of some meat and fish, thereby
improving flavor while also extending shelf life.
For example, in Andalucía, we often placed fresh loins of merluza
(called hake in the United States) in a salazón of salt and some toasted
spices for exactly 18 minutes. While the amount of time might seem
inconsequential, this precise curing time delivered fish with denser,
meatier flesh that required no additional seasoning. And when you have
very fresh fish like that Andalucían merluza—fish that came o‰ the boat
literally hours before we cooked it—the best culinary rule to follow is
that the less you screw with your product, the better. YIELD: 10 ounces (280 g) dry cure
Ingredients
71/2 ounces (210 g)
coarse sea salt
21/2 ounces (70 g)
granulated sugar
1 In a small mixing bowl, combine the salt and sugar.
2 Transfer the resulting salazón to a foodsafe ziptop bag or container
and store at room temperature until ready to use.
_____________________________
BOLLO PREÑAO
If a Spaniard was going to make a bagel dog, this would be it.
Essentially a baguette “impregnated” with a chistorra or small
chorizo sausage (pan preñao is also called pan embarazado—
literally translated as “pregnant bread”), these little beauties
are a common and welcome sight after long Madrid evenings
of imbibing that bleed into early Madrid mornings of
impending hangover.
You can also swing a cheat on these if you are not the breadbaking
sort: In a pinch, make bollos with everything from pizza
dough to that unmentionable popping “dough in a can.” YIELD: 7 servings.
111/2 ounces (325 g) warm water ..
3/4 teaspoon (3 g) instant or
active dry yeast
3/4 teaspoon (5 g) honey
11/2 teaspoons (6 g)
granulated sugar
1/2 ounce (15 g) kosher salt,
plus more to taste
O live oil, for greasing
7 Chistorra or Cantimpalos-Style Chorizo
(see recipes below)
1 cup (240 mL) water
1 In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk
attachment, mix together the water, yeast, honey, and
sugar on low speed for 2 to 3 minutes. Set aside at room
temperature for 10 minutes, until the yeast blooms and
gets foamy.
2 Replace the whisk attachment with the dough hook
attachment. Add the flour to the bowl and knead on
medium speed for 1 minute, until the dough forms a shaggy
mass. If the dough is too sticky, add a little flour; if it is not
sticky enough, add a little more water. Let the dough rest in
the bowl to hydrate for 30 minutes at room temperature.
3 Add the salt and continue kneading on medium speed
for 5 to 10 minutes, until the masa is smooth, elastic, and
bounces back immediately when pressed with a finger.
4 Using the olive oil, lightly grease a large mixing bowl. Place
the dough ball in the bowl and cover with a damp cloth.
Let it rise in a warm place for 30 minutes, until it roughly
doubles in size.
5 Remove the dough from the bowl. Punch it down and divide
it into 7 equal-sized sections (each roughly 41/4 ounces
[120 g]). Form each section into a barra (baguette) shape
slightly longer than the sausages, and place the barras onto
a baking sheet or wood board. Re-cover the barras with the
damp cloth, and set aside for 20 to 30 minutes until the
dough is relaxed and proofed by double.
6 Take a barra, make a deep slit in the middle of it, and lay 1 of the sausages inside. Pinch the dough around
the sausage, crimping together the sides of dough and completely sealing it. Repeat for all of the remaining
barras.
7 Place the bollos on a floured cloth or piece of baker’s canvas. Cover with a clean cloth, and set aside to
ferment the bollos for 20 minutes, or until they have risen slightly.
8 Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C) for at least 30 minutes, making sure 2 racks are in the oven. Place a
ceramic baking stone on the top shelf and place a cast iron pan, baking pan, or second ceramic baking stone
on the bottom rack.
9 Remove the cloth from the bollos, then place them onto the top ceramic baking stone in the oven (you can
also roll the bollos onto a floured board or pizza peel to transfer them to the oven). Immediately pour the
water into the pan or stone on the bottom rack and quickly shut the door. (The water will create steam to
help the bread rise.)
10 Bake the bollos for 15 minutes, until they are golden brown. Remove from the oven and cool for 10 to 20
minutes on a rack. Serve warm.
SUB RECIPE: CHISTORRA
Chistorra is the redheaded stepchild of the Spanish sausage world—
underappreciated, misunderstood, and virtually unheard of outside of its
native País Vasco and Navarra. Maybe that’s because it’s one of the only
semicured sausages in the Spanish arsenal. But for that same reason, it’s
the perfect gateway drug to the addictive world of dry-cured meat.
The recipe begins by creating a masa similar to the one used in Chorizo
Fresco, with the addition of a fermentation agent. This natural bacterial
culture inoculates the sausage with the sort of friends needed for a
quick lactic acid fermentation. Basically, the fermentation culture
lowers the pH of the sausage, giving it a nice, acidic tang.
I learned to make this recipe using only 100% pork, but depending on
which region of País Vasco a Chistorra comes from, it might be made
from beef or various blends of pork and beef. Feel free to change it up a
little—just know your meat and where it comes from.
YIELD: About 8–10 loops or 16–20 links of sausage per 2.2 pounds (1 kg) of meat
Ingredients
1¾ ounces (10 g) F-RM-52 culture
(see p. 94)
½ cup (100 mL) distilled water
Á ounce (10 g) minced garlic
Õ ounce (20 g) kosher salt
Í ounce (5 g) dextrose
Í ounce (2.4 g) TCM #1 or DQ #1
curing salt mix (see p. 83)
¼ cup (50 mL) dry white wine,
such as Verdejo, chilled
¼ cup (50 mL) water, chilled
Á ounce (10 g) pimentón dulce
Á ounce (10 g) pimentón picante
3 tablespoons (45 mL) extra virgin
olive oil, for frying, divided
2 feet (60 cm) 1–1Ö⁄ËÌ-inch (24–26-mm)
lamb casings, soaked, or more as needed
1 Place the cabecero, panceta, and papada meats and grinder parts in
the freezer for 30 minutes to par-freeze before attempting to grind.
2 In a small mixing bowl, combine the F-RM-52 culture and the
distilled water, making a slurry. Set aside for a minimum of 10
minutes at room temperature to bloom.
3 Using a mortar and pestle, crush together the garlic and salt to form
an ajosal. If desired, you can finish the ajosal in a food processor
fitted with the “S” blade.
4 In a mixing bowl, combine the meats with the ajosal, dextrose, and
curing salt. Toss together and set aside as you set up the grinder.
5 Fill a large bowl with ice, and place a smaller bowl inside the icefilled
bowl. Grind the cabecero, panceta, and papada meats once
through a medium-coarse (Ç inch [9.5 mm]) die into the smaller
bowl. Be careful: The meat mixture is wet, so it may squirt and pop
out of the grinder. Return the ground meat to the freezer for 15 to 20
minutes, until it is par-frozen.
6 Grind the cabecero, panceta, and papada meats again through a
medium (¼ inch [6 mm]) die into the same bowl over ice.
7 In a small mixing bowl, combine the wine, water, and pimentones,
making a slurry. Keep the bowl containing the slurry chilled until
ready to use.
Sub-recipe: CANTIMPALOS-STYLE CHORIZO
This classic, dry-cured chorizo hangs close to the heart of every
Spaniard. It’s the pimentón-and-garlic-spiked ambassador most
associated with the embutidos of Spain.
Nearly every Spanish region has its own chorizo; this one is closely
related to the very famous and IGP-protected chorizo of Cantimpalos, a
small municipality located in Castilla y León. Chorizo there is found in
three sizes: sarta, the smallest, cured around 20 days; achorizado, the
classic U-shaped next size up, with a curing time of around 24 days; and
cular, the largest, which is stu‰ed in a pork bung and needs to be cured
around 40 days.
YIELD
Sarta: 8–10 loops of sausage
per 2.2 pounds (1 kg);
Achorizado: 3–4 loops of
sausage per 2.2 pounds (1 kg);
Cular: 1 cular per 2.2 pounds
(1 kg)
Ingredients
¼ ounce (10 g) T-SPX culture
(see p. 94)
½ cup (100 mL) distilled water
Á ounce (10 g) minced garlic
¾ ounce (24 g) kosher salt
Í ounce (3 g) dextrose
Í ounce (3 g) granulated sugar
Í ounce (2.4 g) Instacure #2
or DQ #2 curing salt mix
(see p. 83) …………………………….. .24%
¼ cup (50 mL) dry white wine,
such as Verdejo, chilled
Õ ounce (20 g) pimentón dulce ………..2%
Í ounce (2 g) dried oregano ………….. .2%
For Sarta: 2 feet (60 cm) 1–1Á-inch
(25–35-mm) hog casings, soaked, or more
as needed; for Achorizado: 2 feet (60 cm)
1¼–2-inch (30–50-mm) hog casings,
soaked, or more as needed; for Cular:
1 pork bung, soaked
1 Place the meats, tocino, and grinder parts in the freezer for 30
minutes to par-freeze before attempting to grind. In a small mixing
bowl, combine the T-SPX culture and the distilled water, making a
slurry. Set aside for a minimum of 10 minutes at room temperature
to bloom.
2 Using a mortar and pestle, crush together the garlic and salt to form
an ajosal. If desired, you can finish the ajosal in a food processor
fitted with the “S” blade.
3 In a mixing bowl, combine the ajosal, dextrose, sugar, and curing
salt. Divide the mixture in half.
4 Add half of the ajosal mixture to the cabacero meat and tocino. Toss
together. In a separate bowl, mix the papada with the other half of
the ajosal mixture. Set the mixtures aside in the refrigerator to chill
as you set up the grinder.
Since this style of chorizo can come in di‰erent casing sizes, note
that the grind will vary depending on the size you are shooting for.
TO MAKE CHORIZO SARTA OR ACHORIZADO:
1 Fill a large bowl with ice. Place a smaller bowl inside the ice-filled
bowl. Grind the cabecero meat and tocino mixture once through a
medium-coarse (Ç inch [9.5 mm]) die into the smaller bowl. Be
careful: The meat mixture is wet, so it may squirt and pop out of the
grinder.
2 Grind the papada through a medium (¼ inch [6 mm]) die and
combine with the cabecero meat and tocino mixture for mixing.
TO MAKE CHORIZO CULAR:
1 Fill a large bowl with ice. Place a smaller bowl inside the ice-filled bowl. Grind the cabecero meat and tocino
mixture once through a coarse (¾ inch [19 mm]) die into the smaller bowl. Be careful: The meat mixture is
wet, so it may squirt and pop out of the grinder.
2 Grind the papada through a medium-coarse (Ç inch [9.5 mm]) die and combine with the cabecero meat
and tocino mixture for mixing.
TO FINISH THE CHORIZO:
1 In a small mixing bowl, combine the wine, pimentón, and oregano, making a slurry. Keep the bowl
containing the slurry chilled until ready to use.
2 Place the ground meats in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or you can just mix
in a mixing bowl with a wooden spoon). Begin mixing on low speed. As the mixer runs, pour the wine slurry
into the bowl in a steady stream.
3 Continue mixing on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes, until the wine slurry has been fully incorporated into
the mixture, a white residue forms on the sides of the bowl, and the mixture firms up.
4 Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the T-SPX slurry. Continue mixing for 1 minute, until the T-SPX
slurry is fully incorporated into the mixture. Place the bowl containing the ground meat mixture in the
refrigerator to keep it cold until you are ready to stu‰ the sausage into casings.
5 To make chorizo sarta or achorizada: Stu‰ the sarta or achorizado into the casings and tie into 12-inch (30-
cm) loops, ending both with a butterfly knot series and a loop for hanging.
To make chorizo cular: Stu‰ and tie the cular as you would a morcón or sobrasada, using string to tie it o‰
with a butterfly knot and bubble knot series and ending with a loop at one end for hanging (this type of
sausage is not prepared as links; see p. 90 in Chapter 3 for illustrations and directions).
Using a sterile pin or sausage pricker, prick each sausage several times. Weigh each sausage to obtain a
green weight; record the weights and tag each sausage with its green weight.
6 Ferment the sausages in a drying chamber set at 65°F to 80°F (18.3°C to 26.6°C) and 85% to 90% relative
humidity for 2 to 3 days. Check the pH of the meat (see p. 95) to ensure that the level has dropped below 5.3
before the third day of drying.
7 Hang the sausages in a drying chamber set at 54°F to 60°F (12°C to 16°C) and 80% to 85% relative
humidity for 1 to 2 months, until the sausages have lost about 35% of their green weight. (For the sarta
and achorizado, this will take about 1 month; for the cular, it will take 1½ to 2 months.) At that point, the
sausages will be ready to consume.
__________________________
–PERUNILLAS
I’ll admit it: I’m a bit of an elitist about cookies. Oatmeal raisin cookies
are just granola bars with delusions of grandeur; peanut butter needs
some chunks to be worthwhile; and the King of All Cookies will always
be warm chocolate chip laced with sea salt. As for those dainty little
fucking Frenchie macarons pronounced with a phlegm-y middle
consonant, like you’re about to pass a hairball…is their 15 minutes up
yet? Please?
When the sabias at our matanza baked these delicate lemon and
cinnamon cookies with Ibérico lard, I couldn’t help but get excited.
They’re crumbly, rich, and make for life-altering results. Chocolate
chip: Consider yourself on notice. YIELD: Around 1 dozen cookies
Ingredients
14 ounces (400 g) manteca (pork lard),
preferably Ibérico, plus more for
greasing, softened
101/2 ounces (300 g) granulated sugar,
plus more for sprinkling
4 whole large eggs, yolks and whites
separated into bowls
1/4 cup (50 mL) aguardiente or aniseflavored
liqueur
Juice and zest of 1 lemon
28 ounces (800 g) unbleached
all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon (10 g) kosher salt
1 tablespoon (15 g) baking powder
1 tablespoon (7 g) ground cinnamon
1 In a large mixing bowl, cream together the manteca and sugar until the mixture resembles a fluây little
pork cloud.
2 One by one, whisk the egg yolks into the manteca–sugar mixture. (Place the bowl containing the egg whites
in the refrigerator for later use.) Whisk in the aguardiente, lemon juice, and lemon zest until thoroughly
combined. Set aside.
3 In another mixing bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking powder, and cinnamon.
4 While whisking constantly, add the dry-ingredient mixture, bit by bit, to the wet-ingredient mixture until a
smooth dough forms.
5 On a clean work surface, roll the dough into a ball.
6 Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Grease a baking sheet with some manteca.
7 Break oâ pieces of the dough weighing about 31/2 ounces (100 g) each. Roll each piece into a ball and press
lightly, forming them into 2-inch to 3-inch (5-cm to 8-cm) wide discs.
8 Place each disc on the prepared baking sheet. Brush with the egg whites and sprinkle a little sugar over the
top of each disc.
9 Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through baking, until the cookies are golden
brown. Remove from the oven and set aside on a rack to cool.
10 Serve warm or store for up to 4 days in a sealed container.
##
