When I was living in Spain I used to walk down the narrow callejón away from my school and go to the neighborhood market for snacks. One wonderful day I discovered polvorones. Once I had them I couldn’t get enough and had to force myself not to buy them every day. Everything about them was appealing. From the blue and white wrapper with the twisted ends to the powdery texture they held even after I had crushed them firmly in my hand. I never knew what they were made of, but I loved their nutty flavor and the way they melted in my mouth.

One afternoon during siesta, after weeks of denying myself my favorite sweet, I ventured to the corner market and asked the always-friendly woman who worked there where I could find the polvorones. Sadly, she told me they were only available during las navidades. Disappointed that I’d missed my chance to buy up as many as possible and too shy to ask if she knew how to make them, I walked back to my school. I always kept them at the back of my mind and even found them once again during a trip to Madrid when I ventured into a candy shop, just the kind of place to have something that’s normally only available during los navidades. They weren’t exactly the same, but close enough to make me smile.

I’d nearly forgotten about polverones and even since I’ve become more culinarily inclined, it never occurred to me to try to find a recipe. Who could imagine my surprise when I made cookies recently for a cookie share without even thinking about the name, polvorones de avellanas, and noticed that they tasted remarkably like the polvorones I remembered! Continue reading →