Best Cochinitos De Hojaldre Recipes

MARRANITOS & PUERQUITOS (SOFT MEXICAN GINGERBREAD PIG COOKIES)

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, baking powder, baking soda and salt, then set aside.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar on medium speed for about a minute. Reduce the speed to low then slowly pour in the molasses and buttermilk. Add the eggs, one at a time, making sure that ones mixed in before adding the next. After the eggs have been mixed in, add one third of the dry ingredients, wait for it to incorporate, then add the next third, wait and then add the rest.
• At this point, the cookie dough is going to be soft, so divide your dough into 4 equal sized balls, then wrap them up with plastic wrap and place them in the refrigerator for 4 hours to chill.
• Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
• Once the dough has chilled, roll your dough out on a well floured surface to abut a 1/2 inch thickness. Use your cookie cutter to cut out the cookies, then evenly space them on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. (You should be able to get 4 cookies per ball of dough) I like to dip my cookie cutter in a little bit of flour to make sure I get clean edges.
• Once you have your cookies on your cookie sheet, brush on the egg wash, and bake for 10-12 minutes, until the cookies have risen and the tops have begun to crack.
• Let your cookies cool for about 10 minutes before serving. Serve warm.

MARRANITOS (MEXICAN PIG-SHAPED COOKIES)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, cream together brown sugar and shortening until smooth. Mix in 1 egg, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the baking soda, cinnamon, and molasses. Mix in flour until the dough is stiff enough to roll out.
• Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface to 1/4 inch thickness. Cut into cookies using a pig shaped cookie cutter. Place cookies 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Brush the remaining beaten egg over the tops of the cookies.
• Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the centers of the cookies appear dry and edges are lightly browned.

COCHINITOS DE HOJALDRE

Steps:

• Roll out the puff pastry dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut out ten 6-inch circles and place on parchment-lined baking sheets. Gather the scraps together by placing them on top of each other, overlapping a bit to stick them together (don't form into a ball!). Roll the top lightly to smooth and even it out.
• Whip the pastry cream until smooth and divide among 5 of the circles, leaving some room around the edges. Lightly beat the egg yolks with a fork and brush along the edges. Place the remaining 5 circles on top and press tightly along the edges to seal.
• Cut out five 2-inch circles for the noses and make two little holes with a toothpick or skewer; attach the noses to the tops of the pastries with some of the egg yolk. To make the ears, cut out 10 circles that are a bit smaller than the nose and pull one side slightly so they are a bit pointy, giving them a bit of movement. Seal with some egg yolk. Refrigerate while you preheat the oven.
• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• Mix the remaining egg yolks with the milk and brush the tops of the pastries. Bake until the tops and bottoms are golden, 20 to 30 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
• To decorate, spread a little circle of the melted white chocolate to make eyeballs, allow to set, and then put a smaller circle of melted dark chocolate on top of the white to make the center of the eye. Play around and have some fun giving the piggies a personality of their own. (You can put the chocolate in separate plastic syringes or squeeze bottles and put them in the microwave for a few seconds to melt, then squeeze the chocolate onto the pastries.)