— from the kitchen of Abuela Reyna
Abuela Reyna made pan de polvo for every wedding, quinceañera, and baptism in the family — sometimes for half the town. She'd start three days before, rolling dough on the kitchen table while the grandkids ran in and out, stealing cookies before they were even dusted.
Nobody ever saw her measure anything. She'd grab a handful of lard, a scoop of flour, pinch some cinnamon from the jar she kept on the stove. When you asked how much, she'd say, "hasta que se sienta bien" — until it feels right. She knew by the way the dough held together.
"She'd start three days before. By the second day, the whole house smelled like cinnamon. You knew something was about to happen."
When Abuela Reyna passed in 2019, the family spent three Christmases trying to recreate the recipe from memory. Her daughter Gloria made them too dry. Her granddaughter Marisol added vanilla extract — which Abuela never would have done. Her son-in-law Raul insisted on butter instead of lard and they came out wrong and he knew it immediately.
Finally, at Christmas 2022, Gloria's daughter came closest. She'd found a card tucked in the back of Abuela's recipe box — not the full recipe, just a few lines in her handwriting. Enough to work from. This version is their best translation of those notes into something you can actually follow. It's not exactly hers. But it's close enough that people recognize it.
Preheat your oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Don't use a dark pan — these cookies don't want color, they want to stay pale.
Beat the lard by hand or with a mixer until it's light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the powdered sugar and beat another 2 minutes. It should look almost white and feel almost like whipped cream.
Add the cinnamon, anise, and salt. Mix to combine. Then add the flour one cup at a time, mixing until the dough just comes together. It will be soft and a little crumbly — that's right.
Roll the dough into balls about the size of a walnut, or shape into small crescents. Place on the baking sheet about an inch apart. They won't spread much.
Bake for 20–24 minutes, until the bottoms are just barely golden and the tops are still pale. They will feel soft — they firm up as they cool. Don't overbake.
Mix the cinnamon and sugar in a shallow bowl. While the cookies are still warm (but not too hot to handle), roll each one in the cinnamon sugar until fully coated. The warmth helps the sugar stick. Let cool on a rack.
Store in a tin at room temperature for up to two weeks. They're better on day two. They're best on day three, which is what Abuela always knew.
From the family
Lard is not optional. We tried butter. We tried shortening. They come out wrong. The lard is what makes them melt the way they do. You can find it at any Mexican grocery store — and at H-E-B in the baking aisle.
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