Marranitos (Mexican Pig-Shaped Cookies)
Marranitos (or cochinos, or puerquitos, as are they are called in some Mexican-American communities) are often called Gingerbread Pigs, although they don't actually have ginger in them. The flavor comes from the molasses. This recipe is a trans-pecos region variation which uses the non-traditional addition of cinnamon.
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups packed brown sugar
- ¼ cup shortening
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup unsulfured molasses
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 6 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 egg beaten
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Beat brown sugar and shortening together in a large bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Beat in 1 egg, milk, and vanilla until smooth. Stir in molasses, baking soda, and cinnamon. 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 tops of the cookies with beaten egg.
- Bake in the preheated oven until risen and edges are lightly browned, about 15 to 17 minutes. Cool briefly on cookie sheets; serve warm or transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
You may wish to add a bit of dry ground ginger, and you may use a milk wash instead of an egg wash.