Portuguese Sweet Potato Cookies | Broas de Natal
A variation on Broa Castelar, these sweet potato cookies are made at Christmastime in Portugal. This variety is uniquely made by candying the sweet potato before adding it to the dough.
Ingredients
- 450 g sweet potato, raw with the skin on 1 lb
- 380 g sugar 2 cups
- 340 g semolina 2 cups
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground fennel
- pinch of salt
- zest of 1 lemon
Egg Wash
- 2 egg yolks
- splash of milk
Instructions
The Day Before Baking
- Boil the sweet potato until you can easily pierce a fork through it.
- Remove it from the water (reserve 140 ml or ⅔ cup of the water) and set it aside until it is cool enough to touch. Then, peel the skin off and discard.
- Puree the sweet potato in a food processor until smooth.
- In a medium-sized pot, pour in the reserved cooking liquid and add the sugar. Stir to dissolve and then boil it until it reaches 108℃ / 226℉, which is the thread stage of candy development. Turn off the heat and whisk in the pureed sweet potato until fully incorporated.
- Turn the heat to low and stir constantly until it becomes a thick paste and you can see the bottom of the pan when moving the mixture aside. This will take about 10-15 minutes. Remove it from the heat and set it aside while you mix together your other ingredients.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the semolina, cinnamon, fennel, salt, and lemon zest. Then stir in the candied sweet potato until it forms a thick dough.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit out at room temperature for 12 hours or overnight.
Baking Day
- The next day, use a tablespoon to scoop out the dough and form elliptical shaped cookies by rolling it in your hands. Place the cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet. They can be placed pretty close together since they don't spread much during baking.
- Whisk together the egg yolks and milk and brush on the top of each cookie.
- Bake in a 400℉ / 200℃ for 12-15 minutes, or until golden and slightly cracked on the surface.
- Let cool on a rack before serving.