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Coyotas

Two thin discs sealed round piloncillo and pricked, so the filling melts and leaks and caramelises on the tray.

Not vegetarian — contains lard.

Ingredients

Method

  1. TWO THIN DISCS ARE SEALED ROUND THE PILONCILLO AND PRICKED, so the filling melts and leaks and caramelises on the tray. The leaking is not a fault -- it is the dish. Grated piloncillo between two discs liquefies completely in the oven, and the pricked holes let some of it bubble out onto the hot tray where it darkens and sets hard around the edge of the pastry. That caramelised rim is the best part of a coyota. Sealed tight with no holes, the steam has nowhere to go, the whole thing inflates like a pillow and then bursts somewhere unpredictable, usually splitting a disc in half.
  2. THEY ARE PRICKED IN THE MIDDLE, NOT AT THE EDGE. Five or six holes through the top disc only, in the central area over the filling. Pricked near the seam, the syrup runs out sideways and undermines the seal, and the two discs come apart.
  3. THE EDGES ARE SEALED BY PRESSING WITH A FORK, NOT BY CRIMPING. A fork pressed all the way round gives a wide flat seal with a lot of contact area, which is what holds against the pressure inside. A crimped or folded edge is pretty and has far less surface stuck together.
  4. IT IS A LARD PASTRY AND IT IS ROLLED VERY THIN. A hundred and fifty grams of lard to four hundred of flour, and each disc rolled to about two millimetres. Thin is what gives the characteristic crisp, slightly layered snap; at four millimetres they bake into soft biscuits and the filling is lost inside too much pastry.
  5. THE PILONCILLO IS GRATED AND NOT CHOPPED. Piloncillo is a hard cone and chopped lumps melt at different rates, leaving some patches liquid and some still solid in the finished coyota. Grated on a coarse grater -- which takes real effort -- it melts evenly into one layer.
  6. The flour, sugar, salt and baking powder stirred together.
  7. The lard rubbed in with the fingertips until it disappears and the flour feels damp.
  8. The lukewarm water added and mixed to a firm dough. Kneaded 2 minutes, then RESTED 30 MINUTES under a cloth.
  9. The piloncillo GRATED on a coarse grater and mixed with the cinnamon.
  10. The dough divided into 24 pieces and each rolled out to a disc about 10 cm across and only 2 mm THICK.
  11. A heaped tablespoon of the grated piloncillo mounded on 12 of the discs, leaving a 1.5 cm border clear.
  12. A second disc laid on each and the edges PRESSED ALL THE WAY ROUND WITH A FORK, firmly, for a wide flat seal.
  13. The top of each PRICKED 5 or 6 times through the CENTRE only, over the filling. Not near the seam.
  14. Laid on a lined baking tray, well apart -- the syrup will run.
  15. Baked at 190°C for 18 to 20 MINUTES.
  16. WATCHED for the syrup to bubble out of the holes and darken around the edges on the tray. That is correct and is wanted.
  17. Left on the tray 5 MINUTES so the escaped caramel sets, then lifted off with a thin spatula before it hardens fully. Cooled on a rack.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Mexico · All recipes