We are most proud and happy to offer Celina’s Biscochitos. Derived from the Spanish diminutive form of bizcocho – the Spanish name for biscuit – biscochitos, flavored with cinnamon and anise, are a delicious, light and wonderful. The Traditional New Mexican Biscochito cookies are for sale in bags of 12 or 24. The chocolate chip biscochitos and zia biscochitos both come in bags of 12.
Celina’s Biscochitos offers traditional style biscochitos, using a recipe that has been handed down from Celina’s grandmother. Using only the most authentic techniques, these traditional New Mexican biscochitos will transport you back to a simple time when these biscuit cookies were the cookie of choice for residents of the Southwest. They only use lard in their cookies – no butter or oil substitutes – which results in that perfectly moist taste and feel that’s characteristic of traditional biscochitos. All biscochitos are made a quarter-inch thick, with cinnamon and anise spices added after they come out of the oven – keeping with tradition.
Traditional Biscochito Ingredients: Lard with Hydrogenated Lard (BHT & BHA added to help protect Flavor), Enriched Wheat Flour (Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thaimine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid) Sugar, Eggs, Brandy, Anise Seeds, Cinnamon, Salt, and Baking Powder. Contains Wheat & Eggs
Celina's greatest joy and what fuels her passion the most is sharing her personal experience with her customers. Celina, who uses her paternal grandmother’s recipe, which is authentic in that it still includes brandy and lard, likes connecting the dots between families and heritage. “We make our biscochitos to honor and reflect our tradition. Our cookies are hand-rolled and cut by hand. It does cost us more time and money to do it this way,” Celina concedes, “but the result is worth it and our customers appreciate our efforts.”
Celina started her business the way many people in food do— making biscochitos for family and friends for the holidays. Then family and friends began sharing her biscochitos with their families and friends and suddenly, a business opportunity presented. It started as a seasonal operation in 2010 and so it continued for a few years while her customer base expanded. Then, in 2013, there was a noticeable shift: The phone began to ring with orders for throughout the year, not just during the holidays. So in early 2014 when her real estate license renewal came in the mail, Celina realized that it was time to truly decide which way her bakery endeavor was going. She chose the biscochito over 15 years in home sales. She hasn’t looked back.
Biscochitos were introduced by the Spanish in Mexico sometime in the 16th century. They have been and are called biscochitos, bizcochitos, polvornes, mantecados, and Mexican wedding cookies. The cookies were sprinkled with white powered sugar for traditional weddings to signify purity or so everything was white. The wedding cookie over time has morphed a bit into a sweeter cookie than the traditional biscochito. Recipes throughout New Mexico and Northern Mexico will vary depending on who you talk to, but generally they are a short bread cookie made with either lard, shortening, or butter, flavored with different amounts of anise and cinnamon. It is a very pleasant tasting cookie that is not overly sweet. In 1989 it was made the "Official State Cookie" of New Mexico although the legislature argued for some time as to how to spell it, ether with a z or an s, the the spelling "Bizcochito" winning the debate. Regardless of you choose to spell it New Mexicans pronounce it, "Bis-co-cheat- o". So there you have it in a nut shell and you will be tested on this later.
