2025 DAY 1

Anise Seed

ANISE is native to the Middle East, but is now cultivated all over the world. It has a taste similar to liquorice. Anise seed’s fresh flavour is used to cut the greasy effect of some fatty foods, and to balance rich cheese dishes. It is used a lot in the manufacture of sweets and baked goods.

Bizcochitos - Anise Seed Cookies

Ingredients

• 3 cups flour
• 1 ¹⁄₂ baking powder
• ¹⁄₂ salt
• ³⁄₄cup sugar
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 cup lard OR butter
• 1 ¹⁄_{4 tsp}  anise seeds
• 1 egg

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside. Combine ¼ cup of the sugar with cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Put lard and the remaining ½ cup of sugar into the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle and beat on medium speed until fluffy, about 1 minute. Add anise seeds and egg and beat, stopping mixer once or twice to scrape down sides of bowl with a rubber spatula, until well mixed, about 1 minute. Reduce speed to low, then gradually add flour mixture, scraping sides of bowl as needed, and beat until dough begins to gather into a ball and comes cleanly away from sides of bowl, about 2 minutes. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and divide in half, then shape each half into a smooth ball. Cover with a clean dish towel and set aside to let rest for 15–20 minutes.
3. Roll out half of the dough on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of about ⅛". Cut into desired shapes with a cookie cutter and arrange 1" apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake until golden, about 10 minutes.
4. Transfer cookies to a wire rack and sprinkle with reserved cinnamon–sugar mixture while still warm. Repeat process with remaining half of dough.