
I know, I suck. Things got too busy pre-holiday season with work and shopping and whatnot, so I slacked on the blog. It happens.
And now that I have more time on my hands, its time to present to you: alfajores!
I had alfajores at a friend's holiday party last year, but never found out what they were until recently. I had completely forgotten about those delicious, delicate cookies until I was browsing a shop on Etsy that I frequent, savor.etsy.com. Lovely Savor has a soap designed after alfajores and it was only then, reading the soap description, that I recognized that sweet, dulce du leche filled shortbread cookie that I had eaten almost a year ago.
Upon this realization, my quest began to find a recipe for alfajores that seemed to represent what I had consumed in the past.
Several google searches later, I came across this recipe:
http://www.dianasdesserts.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/recipes.recipeListing/filter/dianas/recipeID/2579/Recipe.cfm
For the Dulce de Leche Filling: 2 cups milk 1/4 cup granulated sugar 2 teaspoons brown sugar Pinch of salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 stick (1 oz/28g) unsalted butter For the Cookie Dough: 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 stick (2 oz/56g) butter 1/4 cup granulated sugar 1 egg 1 egg yolk 1 tablespoon honey 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon vanilla extract *I actually went ahead and used 1 tsp vanilla extract and 1/8 teaspoon almond extract Few drops of rum (optional) *omitted Pinch of grated lemon peel (optional) *omitted For Garnish: (optional) Confectioners' sugar *I lightly dusted them with powdered sugar and omitted the chocolate Dark chocolate, melted Milk chocolate, melted |
Instructions: Prepare the Filling: Boil the milk with the sugars, salt and baking soda Let it cook for about 1 1/2 hours on a very low flame (if cooking on an electric stovetop, cook on low heat), stirring regularly. *I'm not sure what they want for stirring regularly, but 90 minutes is a long time to linger by the stove. I stirred every 15-20 minutes pretty thoroughly and it was just fine. The milk mixture will turn brown by the end of this first step and will be runny. Cover the pot with plastic wrap and place pot inside a larger pot with boiling water *Plastic wrap is going to melt and stick to your pot. I used a very tight-fitting lid and parafilm to wrap the lid which won't melt. Parafilm is pretty expensive, so if you don't mind peeling off melted plastic wrap, just use that instead if that is what you have. A double boiler will also probably work here. Cook for another 1 1/2 hours. The mixture should get sticky and become caramelized. *If the mixture isn't as thick as you would like, you can add in powdered sugar and it will help to thicken up the filling a little more Remove from heat, add butter and vanilla extract, stir and allow to cool. Prepare the Cookie Dough: Mix all the ingredients together to make a thick dough. *Thick is an understatement. This dough, made by the recipe's outline, is like cement. If it is too dry, add some water *HIGHLY recommend this Refrigerate the dough for 2 hours. Remove and let stand to soften. *The dough can be softened by rolling in your hands as well, just don't flour your hands too much or the dough will dry out Roll out dough to 1/8 of an inch thick and use a floured 2 to 2 1/2-inch cookie cutter to cut cookie dough into circles. *It is important to get the right dough thickness here, otherwise the cookies will be too thick and won't be as crispy Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 C). Bake the cookies for about 8 to 10 minutes, until the tops are a very pale golden brown. Cool completely on wire racks. When ready to eat, spread dulce de leche cream between 2 cookie rounds. *The dulce de leche cream thickens significantly once refrigerated. If your mixture is runny at first, see how it is after an hour or two in the fridge. If desired, cover with melted chocolate or confectioner's sugar. Cook's Tips: If you opt to cover the cookies with chocolate, melt the dark chocolate and milk chocolate together on top of the stove (over very low heat) or in a microwave oven. You may prepare the dulce de leche ahead of time and store, covered, in the refrigerator. In place of the rum, try using rum extract or add an extra 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract to the cookie dough. Recipe makes enough cookies to serve 4 people. These cookies are fantastic. I want to bake them all the time now! The shortbread cookies (sans dulce de leche) are also wonderful when dipped in tea or coffee. Enjoy! Edit: As requested by Kiwi, I will post a pic of these yummy cookies. I will try and post a good picture with each recipe from now on :) |
1 comment:
Mmmmmm sounds great! Love the notes you add in those steps.
Can i see pictures of the finished product?
Post a Comment