Alfajores With Coconut Dulce De Leche Recipes

ALFAJORES (DULCE DE LECHE SANDWICH COOKIES)

Steps:

• Mix flour, confectioners' sugar, cornstarch, and salt together in a bowl. Place butter in a separate bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until soft and fluffy. Add white sugar and vanilla and mix well.
• Add flour mixture to the bowl with the butter mixture in 3 stages; mix until just blended. Divide dough in half and roll each half into a log. Refrigerate dough logs until firm, about 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Slice dough logs into 1/4-inch cookies and place on a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until just starting to turn golden around the edges, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Allow cookies to cool on the pan for 1 minute. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely, about 30 minutes more.
• Use a knife to apply a generous amount of dulce de leche on one cookie. Sandwich another cookie on top and place on a serving tray. Repeat with remaining cookies and dulce de leche. Lightly dust finished cookies with confectioners' sugar.

ALFAJORES (DULCE DE LECHE COOKIE SANDWICHES)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F
• In a large bowl mix the butter and 1 cup of powdered sugar.
• Add the flour, corn starch and vanilla extract then mix with your hands into well combined.
• Knead together to form a soft dough. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for 10 to 15 minutes.
• Turn the dough out onto a floured counter and knead for about 2 minutes. Roll out to about ¼ inch-thick and cut out the cookies with a round cookie cutter.
• Place them on a floured cookie sheet and bake for about 10 - 12 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on a rack for 10 minutes. In a small plate, place the flaked coconut and set aside.
• Spread arequipe or dulce de leche on each cookie then put together two cookies, making a sandwich with the arequipe in the middle of the two cookies. When you put the cookies together you'll want some arequipe to come out of the sides. Take the plate with coconut and cover the edges of each alfajor cookie with it, rolling the cookie edge in the flaked coconut if using.
• Sprinkle them with powdered sugar and enjoy.

CLASSIC ARGENTINE ALFAJORES

Steps:

• Sift everything into a bowl, set aside.
• In another bowl, mix powdered sugar and butter until creamy using a handheld whisk. Add in egg yolk one by one, mixing well to combine after each addition. Add in vanilla extract, lemon zest and mix to combine.
• Add in dry ingredients in 3 additions, mixing just enough after each addition. Don't over mix. For the 3rd addition, you will not be able to mix everything to combine using hand held mixer. When it's half mixed, pour everything onto the working surface.
• Start folding the mixture onto itself and gently push with your palm until you get a ball. Do not knead. Refer to tutorial video above for better understanding.
• Wrap with cling film and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes or until manageable.
• Put 1/3 of dough on a cling film and cover it with another. Gently roll it into 8-10mm thickness. If the dough breaks, just gently push it back together. Chill in the fridge for 10 minutes while you continue rolling the rest.
• Take 1 rolled dough from the fridge and place it on the working surface. Remove the top cling film. Cut out 1.7 inch (4.5 cm) circles using floured cutter/glass. Place on parchment paper on baking tray. Place in the fridge if you're not baking them immediately.
• Bake at 360F (180ºC) in a preheated oven, conventional mode, on middle rack for 10-12 minutes or until fully cooked without having any toasted colour. Cool completely before using.
• Pipe dulce de leche on the bottom side of a cookie, more or less the same thickness of the cookie itself. Take another cookie and place it on top and lightly press. Roll in desiccated coconut. Enjoy!
• Place in air tight container, at room temperature. Best consumed the next day. Last good for 1 week at room temperature, 2 weeks in the fridge.

ALFAJORES: DULCE DE LECHE SANDWICH COOKIES

Steps:

• Sift the all-purpose flour, cornstarch, and baking powder. Stir all the ingredients very well and add the lemon zest.
• Use an electric hand mixer to mix the butter with the powdered sugar (previously sifted) until you get a creamy mixture.
• Add the milk and egg yolks, continue mixing until all the ingredients are well combined.
• Add the flour mixture in batches and mix well in between adding each batch of flour. The final dough should be smooth and not sticky. If it's still sticky you can add an additional handful of flour.
• Divide the dough into two equal parts and make two balls of dough. Then gently squash each ball into a thick disk shape. Cover them with plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
• Preheat the oven to 375F (200 ° C).
• Remove the dough from the fridge and place it on a lightly floured surface. Use a rolling pin to flatten and extend the dough until you have a thin layer. The maximum thickness of the layer should be about five millimeters (less than ¼ inch).
• Use a round cookie cutter mold to cut as many circles as you can. I used a 2 in (5 cm) round mold. You can make them smaller or larger, just adjust the baking time accordingly.
• Put the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leave at least two centimeters or ¾ inch of space between each cookie to keep them from sticking together.
• Bake the cookies for about 12-15 minutes or until they are lightly golden. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them cool down completely.
• Take a cooled down cookie and place a teaspoon of dulce de leche on its inner surface (the part that was stuck to the baking sheet), spread it well to the edges of the cookie and then gently stick another cookie (baking side on the caramel) on top to form a cookie sandwich.
• Place the grated dry coconut on a flat plate and roll each stuffed cookie in the coconut mix until it sticks to the dulce de leche filling, giving it the characteristic look of the alfajor cookie. You can also dust the cookies with powdered sugar.
• You can keep the alfajores or dulce de leche cookies refrigerated for a week.

ALFAJORES WITH COCONUT DULCE DE LECHE

Steps:

• Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 375°F. Bring condensed milk, coconut milk, and ½ tsp. salt to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Scrape mixture into a 13x9" baking dish and bake, stirring every 15 minutes or so, until very thick and a light caramel color, 40-50 minutes. Mixture will look lumpy, broken, and very pasty-that's exactly what you want. Let cool in dish 1 hour, then transfer to a food processor and process until smooth. Set dulce de leche aside for serving.
• Meanwhile, whisk almond flour and 2¼ cups all-purpose flour in a medium bowl to combine. Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter, sugar, and 1½ tsp. salt in a large bowl, scraping down sides and bottom of bowl as needed, until pale and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add egg yolk, vanilla, and ¼ cup honey and beat until combined, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients, and mix, scraping down sides and bottom of bowl, until incorporated. Divide dough in half and pat each piece into a 1"-thick disk. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, at least 2 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Roll out 1 disk of dough on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper, dusting with more flour as needed to keep dough from sticking, to about ⅛" thick. Punch out shapes with lightly floured cookie cutters and transfer to 2 parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing 1" apart. Pat scraps into a 1"-thick disk, wrap with plastic, and chill 10 minutes if soft.
• Bake a sheet of cookies, rotating halfway through, until edges are lightly browned, 7-9 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes on baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely. Bake remaining sheet of cookies. Line baking sheets with fresh sheets of parchment paper and repeat process with remaining disk of dough.
• Divide coconut evenly among 3 bowls. Add 1 Tbsp. food-coloring powder (sift if needed) to a bowl of coconut and toss until coconut is coated; add more powder if a more intense color is desired. Repeat with remaining food-coloring powder and another bowl of coconut. Leave 1 bowl of coconut white. If using, add some luster dust to all 3 bowls and toss to combine.
• Turn half of the cookies over to expose flat side; spread 1 tsp. dulce de leche over (this will be the inside of the sandwiches); set aside.
• Heat remaining 2 Tbsp. honey in a small bowl in the microwave just until warm (you want it to be loose), then stir in 2 tsp. warm water. Working one at a time, lightly brush honey over the top of remaining cookies (the ones that have not been filled with dulce de leche). Immediately dip tops into a bowl of coconut; press additional coconut onto cookie to cover any bald spots. Close up cookie sandwiches, coconut side up.
• Do Ahead: Dulce de leche can be made 1 month ahead; place in an airtight container and freeze. Thaw in refrigerator overnight before using. Dough can be made 3 days ahead; keep chilled. Cookies can be baked (but not assembled) 2 days ahead; store airtight at room temperature.

ALFAJORES

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl using an electric mixer (or using a stand mixer) beat butter by itself until creamy.
• Add powdered sugar, brown sugar, cornstarch, vanilla extract, and salt and beat until creamy and well-combined.
• Gradually add flour (I usually add in about 4 parts) and stir until combined.
• Divide dough in half and form each half into a disk. Cover with plastic wrap and transfer to the refrigerator to chill for at least 30 minutes and up to 5 days.
• Once your dough has chilled, preheat oven to 375 F(190C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
• Lightly dust a clean surface with flour and, working with one disk at a time, roll dough to be ⅛" thick.
• Use a round cookie cutter (I like to use 1 ¾" but 2" would also work) to cut into circles. Place on prepared baking sheet, spacing at least 1" apart.
• Transfer to 375F (190C) oven and bake for 8-9 minutes or until edges are just beginning to turn light golden brown.
• Allow cookies to cool completely on baking sheet before removing and filling. Repeat with remaining dough until all cookies have been baked (never place cookie dough on a hot baking sheet!). Make sure to re-gather and re-roll out the dough scraps to get as many cookies as possible!
• Once cookies have cooled, portion 1 ½ teaspoons of dulce de leche onto the bottom of one cookie and sandwich with another. If desired, you can roll the sides of the cookie through desiccated coconut (squeeze the "sandwich" so the dulce de leche reaches the sides and the coconut sticks to it) or dust the tops of the cookies with powdered sugar.

ALFAJORES (DULCE DE LECHE SANDWICH COOKIES)

Steps:

• In a large bowl, beat the butter, icing sugar, egg yolks and lemon zest with an electric mixer until creamy (about 2 minutes). Add the lemon juice and vanilla, mix well.
• Add flour, cornstarch, and baking powder. Mix with a wooden spoon or your hands. Wrap the dough with plastic film and store in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 1 hour, or until the dough is firm.
• Preheat the oven to 176C/350F and grease the baking sheet.
• On a flat surface, sprinkle some cornstarch. Roll out the dough to 1/4 centimeter thick. Cut the dough into the desired shape.
• Bake for 12 minutes. Cookies don't brown much, but they have to feel firm when touched. Let them cool.
• Place the dulce de leche in a bag and cut off the tip. Pipe dulce de leche on the cookies, starting with the edges. Gently press the second cookie on top of the dulce de leche, making sure that the dulce de leche comes out of the edges a little. Roll alfajores in shredded coconut.

EASY HOMEMADE ALFAJORES

Steps:

• Cream butter and sugar. In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle mix the butter and granulated sugar together on medium speed for 2 minutes until combined.
• Add in the vanilla, salt, and cornstarch. Mix until evenly incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary.
• Add flour. Turn the mixer to low and slowly add in the flour until combined.
• Divide the dough in half and roll into logs 2- inches in diameter. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line your baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
• Remove one of the dough logs from the refrigerator. Using a sharp knife, slice into 1/4- inch rounds.
• Place on the prepared baking sheet 1- inch apart (the cookies don't spread while baking). Bake for 8 - 10 minutes until the edges are slightly golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough. Allow the cookies to cool completely.
• Spread or pipe 1 teaspoon of dulce de leche onto the bottom side of half the cookies. Press the other half of the cookies on top of each, forming sandwiches.