Pumpkin Polvorones (Mexican Wedding Cookies)
Polvorones are also known as Mexican wedding cookies. This pumpkin-flavored twist on the classic recipe is the perfect treat for fall. These tender, nutty, whole wheat pumpkin cookies are so simple to make, and might even taste better on day two. Recipe yields 18 to 24 cookies.
Ingredients
- ½ cup room-temperature virgin coconut oil* or unsalted butter
- ½ cup pumpkin purée
- ½ cup cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- 1 slightly heaping cup raw pecans
- 2 cups whole wheat pastry flour or regular whole wheat flour or all-purpose flour
- ½ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
- Lightly toast the pecans in a skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, under they are nice and fragrant. Remove the skillet from the heat. You can either use a food processor to finely chop the pecans (about 10 pulses should do it, don’t blend so well that you end up with pecan butter) or finely chop the pecans with a chef’s knife on a cutting board (let the pecans cool until they’re comfortable to touch before chopping).
- In a large bowl, combine the coconut oil or butter, pumpkin purée, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, ginger, allspice and salt. Beat them with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Gradually add the chopped pecans and flour, beating on low speed after each addition until well blended.
- Using a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop or your hands, shape the dough into 1-inch balls (if using a scoop, roll each ball between your palms to smooth out the edges). Place the cookies on the baking sheet, leaving about 1 ½-inches around each cookie (the cookies will not expand in size).
- Bake for 14 to 15 minutes, until the bottoms of the cookies are lightly browned. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet.
- Pour the powdered sugar into a small bowl. Roll each warm cookie in it to coat liberally, then place it onto a wire rack to cool. Taste, and if the cookies aren’t quite sweet enough to delight, roll them again in powdered sugar. Leftover cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days, or for several months in the freezer.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Kraft’s recipe for Mexican wedding cookies.
*Coconut oil note: If your oil is too solid to scoop (this can happen during the colder months), gently warm it in the microwave just until it’s easier to work with.
Make it dairy-free/vegan: Be sure to use the coconut oil instead of regular butter.
Change it up: Substitute walnuts or almonds for the pecans. Pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) would be good, too, for a nut-free option.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
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