Peruvian Dulce Le Leche Cookies: Alfajores
Harris tells me that he needs to make something for his Spanish class last night. It has to be Peruvian, he says. Well we searched desserts and found a recipe for “alfajores” or dulce la leche sandwich cookies. These were fairly easy to make but I am not much of a baker so- all baking seems a task to me. But these did turn quite yummy and look pretty too. Harris is happy and proudly took them to school this morning!
What You Need:
1 cup all-purpose flour, sifted 1 cup cornstarch, sifted
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted, plus extra for dusting 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and softened 1 1/2 cups dulce de leche, at room temperature 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves 1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
How to Make It:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. In a food processor, combine flour, sugar, salt and butter. Pulse until dough comes together into a ball. If the dough is too sticky add a little more flour so that you can shape the soft dough into a ball. Wrap the dough ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes. Sprinkle some flour onto your work surface and roll the dough 1/3-inch thick. Using any small cookie cutter, cut out the cookies and transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. Bring the dough scraps together and gently press into a ball. Flour your work surface, re-roll 1/8-inch thick and cut out more rounds. Bake the cookies until they are golden and firm, about 15 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely, about 25 minutes. Place the dulce de leche in a small bowl and stir in the cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. Spread about 1 1/2 teaspoons of the dulce de leche on the flat side of a cookie and sandwich with the flat side of another cookie. Place the cookies on a platter, dust them generously with powdered sugar, and serve.