Coyotas are a traditional pastry from the state of Sonora in Mexico. A mix between and cookie and a hand pie, they are the ideal choice for breakfast or as a tasty sweet treat. Plus, they’re super easy to whip up in your kitchen!

Coyotas have a distinct texture and taste. The pastry itself is typically thin and flaky, similar to a pie crust, but slightly thicker. Traditionally made with piloncillo, the filling gives a sweet and caramel-like taste, sometimes with hints of molasses.

When baked, the pastry becomes slightly crisp on the edges while maintaining a softer, chewier center where the filling is. They’re beyond delicious!

Along with coricos corn cookies (another dessert from Sonora), Coyotas have become a staple at my home and I like to make them often to share with family and friends. The recipe is just so easy to whip up!

Close-up of Coyotas from Sonora pastries.

Ingredients

  • Flour: Use all-purpose flour.
  • Lard or shortening: Adds fat to the dough, contributing to its flakiness and texture. You can also use butter instead.
  • Piloncillo: Traditionally used as a sweet filling. Piloncillo is unrefined cane sugar, providing a caramel-like sweetness. You can substitute with packed brown sugar or molasses.
  • Baking powder: It helps the pastry dough rise a little bit. The traditional recipe calls sometimes for beer too.
  • Salt: To enhance the overall flavor of the dough and filling.
  • Eggs: To make the egg wash.
  • Sugar: Use granulated sugar to sprinkle on top.
  • Other fillings: You can also use cajeta, Nutella, dulce de membrillo, or dulce de leche.
Ingredients for the Coyotas pastries on a marble kitchen surface.

How to Make Coyotas

Step 1. Make the piloncillo syrup and filling

First, place piloncillo in a bowl and pop it in the microwave for about 10 seconds, this will soften it a bit and will be easy to break it.

Place it between two sheets of parchment paper and use a rolling pin to break it into small chunks.

crushed piloncillo between two layers of parchment paper.

Divide the piloncillo into two equal parts, add one par to a bowl, and mix with 1 tablespoon of flour. Set aside.

Place the other part of the piloncillo in a small pan, add 1/2 cup of water, and bring to a simmer.

Stir until piloncillo dissolves, then cook over low heat until you have a thick syrup. Remove from heat and allow to cool down completely.

Piloncillo syrup cooking in a pan.

Step 2. Make the dough

Place the all-purpose flour, baking powder, lard or shortening, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Pour the piloncillo syrup and use the flat paddler to mix until everything is nicely combined.

Transfer the dough to a floured working surface and knead for about 1 minute to achieve a smooth dough. If you notice the dough is too dry, add one to two tablespoons of cold water.

Dough ball on a kitchen surface.

Step 3. Assemble

Roll the dough into a 0.11″ (3 mm (0.11 inch) thick sheet. Cut circles about 4-6 inches each.

Gather the scraps, roll them, and cut more circles until you’ll have 12-14 pieces.

Collage with two photos of the dough rolled and cut into circles.

Now, add the piloncillo filling to half of the circles. Ensure the filling is in the middle and not too close to the edges.

Remember, you can also use other fillings like cajeta caramel or Nutella!

Two discs of sough with the piloncillo filling on top.

Cover with the other half of the circles, placing them carefully on top and fitting the edges of both pieces. Gently press the edges of each coyota with a fork to seal them securely.

Then, use the fork to poke and create small holes by pressing lightly in the middle, this will prevent air bubbles from forming while baking.

Sealing a coyota pastry with a fork.

Prepare a baking tray with parchment pepper or a silicon mat and transfer each coyota making sure they’re about 1 inch apart.

Make an egg wash with 1 egg + 1 tablespoon of sugar and brush each coyota. Next, sprinkle with granulated sugar.

Coyotas before baking sprinkled with sugar.

Step 4. Bake

Preheat your oven to 360°F (180°C).

Bake for 20 minutes or until the coyotes are nicely browned on top and have a crispy bottom.

Carefully transfer them to a cooling rack and let them cool completely before storing or you can go ahead and eat them while they’re still warm!

Recipe Tips & Notes

  • Make sure the dough is well-kneaded for a smooth texture but don’t overwork it, though, as it could make the pastry tough.
  • Use small amounts of filling or it might spill out while the pastries are baking.
  • The traditional way of baking these cookies in the bakeries of Hermosillo, Sonora is in a wood-fired oven, which gives them a very particular aroma and the spotty appearance of the real Coyotas de Sonora.

Ways to Serve

Coyotas are perfect to enjoy as a treat, dessert, or like we do in Mexico, for breakfast with a cup of café de olla.

My favorite way of eating them is in the afternoon with hot chocolate or Maizena atole, they are truly irresistible with that flaky texture that melts in your mouth!

They’re also perfect to take along to potlucks or to bring to work and share with everybody.

Mexican coyotas pastries on a plate and some ingredients arranged around.

Store

Coyotas last up to 4-5 days at room temperature on your kitchen countertop. Make sure to allow them to cool down completely to prevent them from creating moisture if they’re still warm.

Layer the pastries between sheets of parchment paper in an airtight container and enjoy through the week.

I do not recommend that you freeze these pastries, I’ve done it and after thawed they were too soft for my liking. But if that’s fine with you, store them in sealed bags and freeze them for 2-3 months.

The History

Coyotas were invented back in the 50s in Villa de Seris, today a neighborhood in the city of Hermosillo in Sonora but which was a remote community at that time.

Back then, women and kids of mixed Spanish and native heritage were nicknamed coyotas and coyotitos. They’d sell cookies in town, and their nickname stuck as the name for the cookies we still have today.

The recipe is said to have Spanish origins since it was precisely Agustina Araiza, the wife of a Spanish military man, who shared her recipe with Doña María Ochoa, who popularized it by sharing these delicious cookies with her neighbors.

More Mexican Desserts

Have you tried my Coyotas recipe? Leave a comment below to let me know how it turned out! And remember to follow this blog on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram.

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Coyotas recipe.

Coyotas (Sonora Style Pastries)

7 large coyotas
Coyotas from Sonora are flaky and with a delicious sweet and smoky taste! Perfect to enjoy as a sweet treat or breakfast with a cup of coffee or hot chocolate.
prep 10 minutes
cook 20 minutes
total 30 minutes

Equipment

  • 1 large baking tray

Ingredients 

For the cookies

  • 3 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 ¼ cup lard (or shortening)
  • ½ Tablespoon baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 small egg
  • 1 ½ teaspoon sugar (for sprinkling on to)

For the syrup

  • ½ cup crushed piloncillo (read note 1)
  • ½ cup water

for the filling:

  • ½ cup crushed piloncillo (read note 1)
  • 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour

Instructions
 

Make the syrup

  • Place piloncillo in a small pan, add water, and bring to a simmer. Stir until the piloncillo dissolves.
  • Simmer over low heat until a thick syrup forms. Remove from heat and allow to cool down completely.

Make the dough

  • Place flour, baking powder, lard or shortening, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer.
  • Pour the piloncillo syrup and use the flat paddler to mix until everything is nicely combined.
  • Transfer the dough to a floured working surface and knead for about 1 minute to achieve a smooth dough. If you notice the dough is too dry, add one to two tablespoons of cold water.

Make the pastries

  • Roll the dough into a 0.11″ (3 mm (0.11 inch) thick sheet. Cut circles about 4-6 inches each.
  • Gather the scraps, roll them again, and cut more circles until you have 12-14 pieces.
  • Mix the other part of the crushed piloncillo and flour in a bowl and distribute in the middle of half of the dough circles (read note 2).
  • Cover with the other half of the circles, placing them carefully on top and fitting the edges of both pieces. Gently press the edges of each coyota with a fork to seal them securely.
  • Then, use the fork to poke and create small holes by pressing lightly in the middle, this will prevent air bubbles from forming while baking.
  • Prepare a baking tray with parchment pepper or a silicon mat and transfer each coyota making sure they’re about 1 inch apart.
  • Make an egg wash with 1 egg + 1 tablespoon of sugar and brush each pastry, then sprinkle with sugar on top.

Bake

  • Preheat your oven to 360°F (180°C).
  • Bake for 20 minutes or until the coyotes are nicely browned on top and have a crispy bottom.
  • Carefully transfer them to a cooling rack and let them cool completely before storing or you can go ahead and eat them while they’re still warm.

Notes

  1. Piloncillo can be bought crushed already, but if you can’t find it, buy it whole and first place it in the microwave for 8-10 seconds to soften, then place it between two sheets of parchment paper and use a rolling pin to break it into small chunks.
  2. You can also use other fillings to make the Coyotas. Cajeta, Nutella, dulce de membrillo, or dulce de leche works perfectly for this recipe.
  3. This recipe yields 7 large pastries, you can make them smaller and get 12-14 coyotas instead.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1 coyota pastry | Calories: 676kcal | Carbohydrates: 76g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 38g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 102mg | Potassium: 73mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 29IU | Calcium: 73mg | Iron: 3mg
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Recipe Rating




19 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    I followed the recipe exactly, and the texture was very “powdery” at first in an unappealing way. However, after sitting for a day, they improved dramatically. I also made some with strawberry filling which were a big hit, too. Thank you!

  2. I’m making these for my grandpa he used to eat these as a child in Sonora! 😁 could I use butter instead of lard?

    1. Absolutely, Mariah. Butter is a good substitution for lard in this Coyotas recipe, so if you make them let me know how they turned out!

  3. 5 stars
    These are the cookies on my childhood in Hermosillo. Mi Abuela, Nana Sara, would make these for us as a treat and I would so many I would get a stomach ache (which was 100% worth it). Thank you for sharing this recipe!

  4. Great ingredients! I’m using the hand method right now. Is room temperature or chilled lard best? Do you ever chill the dough before rolling out? Thanks a lot

    1. Hi Emmanuella, if you make the dough by hand is better if you use softened lard. If using a stand mixer then chilled lard can be used easily as it would be easier to combine into the dough.

      And I only chill the dough if the room temperature is too hot, so it would be easier to manage. 10-15 minutes are enough.

      1. 5 stars
        I cannot tell you how much it meant to have the Sonoran women who fill me with joy to be so touched with these coyotas i made from your recipe… they served me a special breakfast because it meant that much to them! There’s a lot of love in the food I taste from women all over Mexico and it teaches me so much more than food. Thank you Maricruz. You are incredible!

  5. 5 stars
    I have never made filled cookies before, and these look adorable and so delicious! Looking forward to trying them.

  6. I’d not heard of coyotas before, but they sound delighful. I love learning about authentic recipes, so thanks for all the info.

      1. Thank you for this recipe, just as important is the story. Brings back so many beautiful memories of my beautiful mother and her beloved home town of Hermosillo, Son. Gracias, bendiciones 🌹