There are some foods that just by taking a bite will transport us to other places or times, and without a doubt that the Christmas Pastries is one of them.
They are known as Roscos al vino or Roscos Andaluces, and they are the best pastries for the holiday season.
These wine cookies are easy to make, you will only need a couple of ingredients, and you can get them done in less than an hour.
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Of course, every family has its own recipe, but here we will take on the classic one.If you were looking for pastries or easy desserts to make, then you can stop the search because you are in the right place.
In this article, you will learn how to make Spanish Christmas Pastries, some tips to serve and store them, and more.
Table of Contents show
Background of the Dish
These types of Spanish Christmas pastries had been a staple of Andalusian cuisine for centuries, although it is difficult to determine the exact place and time of the origin of this Christmas cookie.
In any case, it is known that its origin took place in the south of Spain hundreds of years ago, and was passed from generation to generation until it became one of the most popular Christmas desserts.
Part of its popularity is because it is easy to make, and it only takes less than an hour to be ready.These Spanish Christmas pastries are part of the Spanish Christmas Traditions from Andalucia.
Plus, you only need a couple of basic ingredients, while there are many replacements and changes you can make to make this recipe completely yours.
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Things You’ll Need for Christmas Pastries
To make one of the most popular Christmas desserts, you will only need a couple of ingredients and your oven ready to bake some cookies.
The lard and muscat wine can be the hardest thing to find, but you can use butter and any type of sweet wine if you can’t find the ones listed.
The best part is that you can use other Christmas baking ideas and completely customize this recipe.
At the end of the day, you will still have one of the most delicious Spanish Christmas pastries as a result.
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups + 2 tbsp (300 g) all-purpose flour
- 4 tablespoons (40 g) toasted sesame seeds
- 1/3cup (70 g) ground sugar or icing sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 g) lard
- 1 teaspoon of anise granites
- 1/2 (120 g) sweet wine, (muscat type, or any other white wine)
- Zest of 1 orange
- Icing sugar to decorate
How to Make Christmas Pastries – Step by Step Guide
- To start with this easy dessert recipe, put the flour in a large frying pan on the stove. With a wooden spoon, stir to toast the flour. Stir it constantly to prevent it from burning. This step will take us about 10-15 minutes, then remove the pan from the heat and let it cool down.
- You can toast the sesame seeds, or buy them toasted. If you bought the regular ones, toast until golden for about 5 minutes at medium temperature, if you bought the toasted ones just skip this step.
- Once the flour is cold, sift it and put it in a bowl. Add the sugar, anise and orange zest. Mix to integrate the ingredients. Add the lard that must be at room temperature and soft so you can work with it and the wine.
- With a fork, incorporate the ingredients until you get a few wet crumbs. With the hand, form a compact dough ball. Place the dough on parchment paper on the work surface and flatten it.
- Cover with a new parchment paper and, with a rolling pin, stretch until it is 1 to 1.5 cm thick. It is a dough with a rather sandy texture, so you must compact the dough around the edges to tighten it, as you stretch it with the pin.
- With a large and a small cookie cutter, form the roscos de vino, as you would do with a doughnut. Place them on the baking dish.
- Preheat the oven to 180º C for 10 minutes before baking the roscos.
- Bake them (without the fan function), for about 12 to 15 minutes. It depends on your oven, so check them from time to time.
- Carefully transfer them to a rack, once they are baked and when they are still warm, coat them in icing sugar or ground sugar. This icing sugar is what gives them that characteristic snowy look. And that’s it, your classic Christmas cookies are ready.
Substitution of Ingredients
These Spanish Christmas Pastries are truly one of the best Spanish desserts, mostly because you can get them done in less than an hour and you only need a couple of ingredients.
However, you can look for Christmas dessert ideas, and use them for inspiration as ingredient substitutions.
For example, you can add cinnamon, nutmeg, or any other flavor that reminds you of this holiday season.
You can even add some chopped nuts, chocolate chips, or raisins to completely customize this recipe.
If you can’t find lard or Muscat wine, just replace them with butter and any sweet wine respectively.
If you liked this recipe, then I encourage you to try other classic Spanish Christmas food ideas and winter recipes from Andalusia, such as Pavo Navideño, Roscón de Reyes, Spanish Marzipan, Spanish turron, and churros.
Lard cookies are a thing in Spain, and you can also try for Christmas the irresistible mantecados and the equally famous polvoron cookies.
Tips on Serving Christmas Pastries
You can make this Christmas pastries recipe ahead and have them for breakfast on Christmas morning, or as an afternoon snack.
I assure you that this will become your new favorite traditional Christmas cookies, you can just put them in a jar and let everyone grab a few as the day goes by.
Even though they are wine cookies, most of the wine in the cookie gets evaporated, so it is safe for kids.
However, if you try them and they taste too much like wine, just avoid giving them to children. Another Christmas recipe that you can try is the Spanish buñuelos recipe.
You can also serve these Christmas pastries with a glass of the best coquito drink and impress whoever comes to visit you for the holidays.
How to Store Christmas Pastries
The best part about these unique Christmas cookies is that you can make them ahead and just enjoy them on Christmas morning without having to cook.
All you have to do is to store them in a covered container at room temperature for up to five days.
If they harden, you can take them to the oven for a couple of minutes and eat them warm, or serve them with a glass of warm milk and soak them there to soften.
Recipe Card: Christmas Pastries
Yield: 10
Christmas Pastries Recipe
There are some foods that just by taking a bite will transport us to other places or times, and without a doubt that the Christmas Pastries is one of them.
They are known as Roscos al vino o Roscos Andaluces, and they are the best pastries for the holiday season.
These wine cookies are easy to make, you will only need a couple of ingredients, and you can get them done in less than an hour.
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups + 2 tbsp (300 g) all-purpose flour
- 4 tablespoons (40 g) toasted sesame seeds
- 1/3cup (70 g) ground sugar or icing sugar
- 1/2 cup (100 g) lard
- 1 teaspoon of anise granites
- 1/2 (120 g) sweet wine, (muscat type, or any other white wine)
- Zest of 1 orange
- Icing sugar to decorate
Instructions
- Put the flour in a large frying pan on the stove. With a wooden spoon, stir to toast the flour. Stir it constantly to prevent it from burning. This step will take us about 10-15 minutes, then remove the pan from the heat and let it cool down.
- You can toast the sesame seeds, or buy them toasted. If you bought the regular ones, toast until golden for about 5 minutes at medium temperature, if you bought the toasted ones just skip this step.
- Once the flour is cold, sift it and put it in a bowl. Add the sugar, anise, and orange zest. Mix to integrate the ingredients. Add the lard that must be at room temperature and soft to be able to work it and the wine.
- With a fork, incorporate the ingredients until you get a few wet crumbs. With the hand, form a compact dough ball. Place the dough on parchment paper on the work surface and flatten it.
- Cover with a new parchment paper and, with a rolling pin, stretch until it is 1 to 1.5 cm thick. It is a dough with a rather sandy texture, so you must compact the dough around the edges to tighten it, as you stretch it with the pin.
- With a large and a small cookie cutter, form the roscos de vino, as you would do with a doughnut. Place them on the baking dish.
- Preheat the oven to 180º C for 10 minutes before baking the roscos.
- Bake them (without the fan function), for about 12 to 15 minutes. It depends on your oven, so check them from time to time.
- Carefully transfer them to a rack, once they are baked and when they are still warm, coat them in icing sugar or ground sugar. This icing sugar is what gives them that characteristic snowy look.
Notes
This is one of the easiest Christmas desserts to make, but you must have parchment paper or a similar one for the steps where it's listed because the dough has a really sandy and crumbly texture.
You can take ideas from other Christmas dessert recipes, and add different flavors from this holiday such as cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.
You can even add almonds and nuts so your pastries will have more texture.
Nutrition Information
Yield
10Serving Size
1
Amount Per ServingCalories 624Total Fat 7.93gCarbohydrates 17.36gFiber 0.7gSugar 5gProtein 1.87g
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Paulina
Hola, I’m Paulina! Together with my team, we are passionate about Southern Spain. Here we share all you need to know for great times in Southern Spain with the best places to visit, stay and, of course, the best food to eat.
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