Sombrero Cookies

The recipe for these cookies came into being in the 1950's.  Most often, the main cookie batter was made from a recipe for Mexican Sugar Cookies. It became  popular around that time to cut out the dough in the shape of a sombrero and use your imagination as to how their were then to be decorated.

 The little top of hat (the pointed part of the sombrero was  either made by using a small marshmallow or a gumdrop, the choice was to the cook.

Grandmother had cookie cutters in the shape of the sombrero which she used to cut out these little cookies and that made them even more special.

Another reason these were a special treat was because at the time a TV show was airing "The Cisco Kid"......anyone remember that?

 

Here are two recipes for these little Sombrero Cookies. The first is the American version that most of us probably had, and the second is the Mexican based sugar cookie that was most often used.

 

Sombrero Cookies 

1/4 c. butter
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. salt
1 egg
1 c. flour
1/2 c. oats

marshmallows or gumdrops for decoration

 

 

Preheat oven to 375 F

Put 1/4 cup butter into bowl, beat until smooth, then slowly add brown sugar and white sugar, beating until fluffy. Beat in vanilla and salt and egg. Add flour and oats. Drop on greased cookie sheet.

Bake 8 minutes at 375 F;  remove from oven.

Place one marshmallow or gumdrop firmly in the center of each cookie.  Bake 3 more minutes.

Let cookies cool, use a white icing and roll the edges of the cookies in the icing. Then roll in sprinkles of your choice. Really, to decorate  these cookies, you only need a very active imagination, so have fun !

 

 

Mexican Sombrero Sugar Cookie Cookie Recipe  

 

 

(This was used most of the time as the base recipe for     these cookies, then they were decorated)  

 

1/2 c. shortening

    1 c. white sugar

1 tsp. anise seed, ground

2 eggs

6 c. all-purpose flour

 1 T baking powder

1/2 Tbsp. cream of tartar

  1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 c. orange juice

3 Tbsp. ground cinnamon

 1 c. white sugar

 

Preheat oven to 350 F

 

 Beat shortening until light and fluffy. Add one cup sugar, and   anise seed. Mix until creamy. Add eggs and mix well. Add   flour, baking power, cream of tartar, salt and orange juice.  Mix well.

Knead dough until smooth.  On lightly floured surface, roll to 1/2 inch thick.  Cut using cookie cutter. Bake until light brown, usually this is about 5 to 8 minutes. 

Decorate your cookies using a marshmallow or gumdrop for the top portion of the sombrero. Just be sure to insert that part of your decoration while the cookie is warm, so it will be secure and not fall off once the cookie has cooled.

******If you are not making Sombrero cookies, you will roll the cookies in a mixture of 1 cup sugar and 3 tablespoons of cinnamon while they are warm.  Now my grandmother, at times, would go ahead and do this step anyway. She would  then apply the frosting to the edges of the cookies and decorate them just as in the first recipe listed above here. So it is you choice as to how you want to make your cookies.   

 

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