Biscochitos

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift flour with baking powder and salt.

In a separate bowl, cream lard with sugar and freshly ground anise seeds until fluffy. (This is a very important step! You want a lot of air incorporated into the lard because it helps make the cookies lighter.).

Beat in eggs one at a time.

Mix in flour mixture and white wine until well blended.

Refrigerate 1-2 hours.

Turn dough out on a floured surface and roll out desire thickness (I usually like it between 1/8-1/4 of an inch thick).

Cut into shapes.

Mix the 1/2 cup sugar and 2 tbsp of cinnamon in a small bowl.

Dip tops of the cut out cookies in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Bake 10-12 minutes or until edges turn a golden color.

Remove from oven and immediately dip cookies again in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

Place cookies on cooling sheet and allow to cool completely. (If you try to eat them while they're still warm, they will taste like lard-- not fun!).

Variation: You can also "paint" the cookies with a mixture of 1/2 cup heavy cream or evaporated milk and food coloring (red or green). With a paint brush, put a heavy coat on top of cut out cookies (for this variation, it's usually the shape of a chile/chili). Sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, then bake for 10-12 minutes.