Polvorones
These are one of my favorite cookies! Nutty flavor from the browned butter, crumbly, and full of sugar. SO GOOD!
Makes about 100 cookies
Directions
Ingredients
1- brown the butter. In a medium pot over medium high heat, melt the butter. It will begin to boil and bubble, let it, this is just the water boiling off. Once the butter stops making noise it will begin to brown. Turn the heat down to medium and keep an eye on it. Stir it around a few times. You'll see little brown flecks appear, this is the milk solids browning. Once you have a nice color and, more importantly, a nutty, delicious smell, remove from the heat and place the brown butter in a bowl and refrigerate until cool. Do not strain it, all those little brown bits are the flavor.
2- toast the walnuts. Heat the oven to 350 and place the walnuts on a tray in one layer. toast for 10-12 minutes, checking frequently. You may want to go longer, just don't let the walnuts get too dark or they will be bitter. Remove from the oven and let them cool to room temp.
3- put the room temperature walnuts in a food processor and buzz until you have the texture of fine gravel. More course than beach sand but finer than hand chopped walnuts. Add the rest of the ingredients and buzz until combined.
4- using a small cookie scoop, scoop out nice little half-spheres of dough onto a parchment lined sheet pan. refrigerate until the dough is firm to the touch.
5- bake at 350 degrees for 22-25 minutes. Check them at 17 minutes. Rotate the tray 180 degrees after 15 minutes.
6- when the cookies are done, remove from the oven and set a timer for 7 minutes. Put the remaining one pound of powdered sugar in a large bowl. When the timer goes off, gently place the warm cookies into the powdered sugar and gently toss with a fork to coat the cookies with a generous amount of powdered sugar. Gently remove the cookies with a fork, if you touch the cookies, you'll leave a big fingerprint so, you know, don't.
7- Allow the cookies to cool completely, they taste much better at room temp than warm. They also keep for weeks, so make lots.
600 grams all-purpose flour
214 grams powdered sugar
283 grams toasted walnuts
big pinch kosher salt
pinch of cinnamon
20 grams pure vanilla extract
565 grams (5 sticks) butter, browned
For finishing
453 grams (1 pound) powdered sugar