San Nicolas cookies are flat, crisp cookies from Pampanga pressed in carved wooden molds, many showing the figure of San Nicolas de Tolentino. They were traditionally baked and blessed for his feast day in September.
1 hour · Serves 10
Ingredients for San Nicolas Cookies
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup arrowroot flour (uraro) or cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup thick coconut milk
1 teaspoon grated dayap or calamansi zest (optional)
Extra flour, for dusting the molds
How to cook San Nicolas Cookies
1.Heat the oven to 160 C and line baking trays with parchment.
2.Sift together the flour, arrowroot flour, baking powder and salt.
3.Cream the butter and sugar until light, then beat in the egg yolks and zest.
4.Add the flour mixture and coconut milk in turns and knead into a firm, smooth dough that does not stick. Add flour 1 tablespoon at a time if it is sticky.
5.Dust a wooden mold with flour and tap out the excess. Press a walnut-sized ball of dough firmly into the mold, scrape the back level with a knife and tap the mold hard on the table to release the cookie.
6.Arrange on the trays 2 cm apart. Bake for 15 to 18 minutes until set and pale gold at the edges.
7.Cool on the trays, where they turn crisp. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.
