Polvorones de Nuez (Mexican Wedding Cookies)

Ingredients

• 150 g pecans
• 230 g butter, softened
• 60 g powdered sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 280 g wheat flour
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp salt
• 150 g powdered sugar, for rolling

Method

1. 1.

   Toast and grind the pecans — Heat the oven to 165°C. Spread the pecans on a baking tray and toast for 8 minutes, until they smell nutty, then cool completely and grind them to a coarse flour in a food processor.

2. 2.

   Cream the butter and sugar — Beat the softened butter with the 60 g powdered sugar and the vanilla extract for 3 minutes, until pale and light. You want it aerated but not warm, or the cookies will spread.

3. 3.

   Fold in the dry mix and chill — Fold in the flour, ground pecans, cinnamon and salt with a spatula until the dough just comes together and looks sandy rather than smooth. Wrap it and chill for 30 minutes.

4. 4.

   Shape and bake pale — Roll walnut-sized balls between your palms and space them 4 cm apart on a lined tray. Bake for 15-17 minutes, until firm to the touch and only just golden underneath, never browned on top.

5. 5.

   Coat while still warm — Let the cookies settle on the tray for 5 minutes, then roll them one by one in the powdered sugar while still warm so the first coat melts into the surface.

6. 6.

   Cool and coat a second time — Cool them completely on a rack, then roll them a second time in the remaining sugar for a thick, chalky white coat. They keep for a week in a tin and collapse to dust as you bite.