Pecan Polvorones with Dulce de Leche

Pecan Polvorones - made May 2, 2011 from Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy by Alice Medrich

Cinco de Mayo is coming up and at first I went with a Mexican Chocolate Brownie recipe to mark the occasion.  I haven't put the recipe up yet because, as it turns out, I didn't like it.  But I will put it up shortly since it is part of my baking odyssey and my baking challenge and I can't put up just the recipes that turned out.  Not all of them are going to be successful nor will I like all of them.  But that still left me short for a Cinco de Mayo cookie.  And in flipping through the myriad of baking cookbooks I have, I discovered there aren't many "international" recipes amongst them.

Fortunately, the Browned Butter Oatmeal Cookies were so good that I couldn't resist trying another recipe from Alice Medrich's book before I had to return it to the library.  And she does have more variety of an international bent in her book (I also want to try her alfajores recipe).  This time around, I chose polvorones, which, according to Alice, are "exquisitely tender Spanish or Latin American shortbread cookies".  Filipinos have something similar called polvoron.  Looking at the recipe, the base ingredients are also similar to Mexican Wedding Cookies except this is the thumbprint version.  In keeping with the Spanish/Latin American theme, I skipped the muscovado filling and went with dulce de leche instead.

Make sure you toast the pecans first as that brings out their best flavor.  Cool completely before putting in the food processor.  I don't normally use my food processor to make cookie dough but it was pretty easy to put together per the recipe instructions.  The dough was very easy to work with, not too sticky and it was easy to shape.  Make the balls small since these cookies are best when they're bite size.  Once I shaped them into small balls, I poked the handle end of a wooden spoon in the center to make the holes and widened them slightly.  I froze the cookie dough balls with the indentations first before baking a taste test batch.  The cookies spread only very slightly and the "holes" widened and flattened out a bit.  I didn't want them too flat since I did want the indentations to be deep enough to hold the filling so I took the baking pan out halfway through baking and pressed the handle of the wooden spoon again to flatten the indentations a bit more.  If you make the holes deep enough in the first place, you shouldn't have to do that step.

I really liked these cookies - they had the same tender texture as Mexican Wedding Cakes but were sturdy enough to hold their shape.  I loved it paired with the dulce de leche filling as the sweetness of the dulce de leche was a perfect contrast to the nutty flavor and tender crumb of the cookie.  Alice Medrich also suggests you can fill these with nutella. While this wouldn't be practical in a care package, this is a pretty cookie to serve at an afternoon tea or a dessert buffet.

1 ½ cups (5.25 ounces) pecans

1/3 cup (2.33 ounces) sugar

½ teaspoon salt

½ pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly softened and cut into chunks

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 large egg yolk (optional)

2 cups (9 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour

Filling

2/3 cup (4.625 ounces) firmly packed dark muscovado sugar

1/3 cup heavy cream

Scant 1/8 teaspoon salt

1.      Pulse the nuts in a food processor until most are finely ground and the largest pieces are about ¼ inch.  Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

2.      Wipe the processor bowl with a paper towel to remove excess oil from the nuts.  Add the sugar and salt and process until fine and powdery.  Add the butter, vanilla and egg yolk, if using, and pulse until the mixture is smooth.  Add the flour and pulse until the dough starts to clump together.  Add the nuts and pulse just until combined.  Transfer the dough to a bowl and knead it by hand briefly to make sure it is evenly mixed.

3.      Shape the dough into 1-inch balls (0.5 ounce each) and place them slightly apart on a plate or tray big enough to hold all the balls yet small enough to fit in your refrigerator.  Press the handle of a wooden spoon dipped in flour (or your finger) into each ball to form a depression.  Cover and chill the cookies for at least 2 hours, and preferably overnight.

4.      Preheat the oven to 325⁰F.  Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven.

5.      Remove the cookies from the refrigerator and place them 1 inch apart on the lined or ungreased cookie sheets.  Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, until the cookies are lightly colored on top and light golden brown on the bottom.  Rotate the pans from top to bottom and from front to back halfway through the baking time to ensure even baking.  Cool cookies completely.

6.      To make the filling: while the cookies are cooling, combine the muscovado sugar with the cream and salt in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring, until the sugar is dissolved.  Boil gently for about 2 minutes without stirring.  Cool the sauce briefly.

7.      Spoon a little filling into the depression in each cookie.  Allow the filling to cool completely.  May be stored in airtight container for at least a week.