Marranitos (Mexican Pig-Shaped Cookies)

17 Reviews

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 15 min
Ready In: 35 min

“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 - and no cinnamon either. In fact, traditional marranitos get their delicious spicy-brown goodness from molasses. This recipe is a trans-pecos region variation, it uses the non-traditional addition of cinnamon. You may wish to try also adding a bit of dry ground ginger, and you may use a milk wash instead of an egg wash.” - by nmcowgirl

Directions

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.

Reviews (17)

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Grasshopper

Jun. 10, 2008

"I love these cookies! The second time I made them I altered the recipe just a bit, which really made them incredible: 1)I added 1 tsp of ground ginger as suggested. 2)I thought these were a tad too..." See more molasses-y, so I used 3/4 cup molasses and 1/4 cup honey. 3)To make the dough a little less crumbly and easier to roll out, I upped the milk to 1/3 cup. 4) I like them to be a little thicker, so I rolled the dough out to 1/2 inch thickness. Also, my pig cookie cutter was much smaller than the traditional, so this recipe made 4 dozen cookies, and I baked them for 12 minutes (you don't want to overbake). Delicious! "

dena0206

Jun. 2, 2009

"Love these cookies! Great flavor -- even better than the bakery's version. However, based on the "too dry" remarks from several of the reviewers, I only used about 5 cups of flour. Basically, I just..." See more added flour until the dough pulled away from the bowl. "

MrsZuniga

Apr. 14, 2008

"They tasted exactly like the puerquitos that my parents used to buy me as a child from our local panaderia (bakery). My one suggestion is to adjust the baking time if you dont have the marranito/puerq..." See moreuito cookie cutter. this cookie cutter is slightly larger then your average large cookie. I used a large tulip cookie cutter (b/c its what i had) and the first batch hardened to much, and they were okay, but they defintely didnt have that authentic marranito texture. So I lowered the timed by 3-4 mintues. Its also important to roll the batter into the right thickness...enjoy!"

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