Other than feeling like it was the middle of the night as I left the house to get to a 6 AM yoga sculpt class this week, the spring forward time change hasn't left me feeling physically or emotionally out of sorts. Instead I have felt slightly more energized this week. Whether I will experience a delayed reaction to the time change adjustment remains to be seen. Considering my ambitious baking schedule this week, I am keeping my fingers crossed I won't be hitting the proverbial 'wall' by the end of the week. In addition to all of the cookie baking planned, a couple of loaves of my favorite Irish Soda Bread need to be baked up. Because St. Patrick's Day wouldn't be same without it!
I may have discovered yet another new favorite cookie. Alfajores (pronounced AL-fa-HO-res) are wondrous bites of irresistible deliciousness. These elegant, melt in your mouth cookies are made with two buttery shortbread-like cookies sandwiched around a luscious mound of dulce de leche. If you have never had them before, they may be one of the best cookies you had never heard of before. For those of you who have been indulging in alfajores for years, consider yourself lucky! Popular in Spain, Argentina, and throughout Latin American, alfajores are claimed to have Middle Eastern origins. It's claimed the Moors are responsible for bringing alfajores to Spain when they invaded the country centuries ago. These heavenly cookies ultimately made their way to South American by Spanish immigrants. As with most cookie recipes spanning centuries and cultures, there are a number of the variations to them. Some alfajores are filled with jam, some rolled in coconut, some dusted with sifted confectionary sugar, and some dipped either dark or white chocolate. However, by far the most popular filling is a thick, rich, ambrosial dulce de leche. It's no wonder why afajores are considered to be an irresistible confection.
In addition to the variations of fillings, there are a number of recipes for the cookies themselves. In addition to flour, salt, granulated sugar, butter, and egg yolks, cornstarch, baking powder, and baking soda are the most common ingredients. However, my version of alfajores uses confectionary sugar instead of granulated sugar and completely omits using cornstarch, baking powder, and baking soda. The result is a crispy, tender, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth shortbread-like cookie.
The dough for the cookies comes together easily using a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. While the texture of dough appears as if it could be rolled out immediately, allow the dough to rest in the refrigerator for 30 to 60 minutes. Then on a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to a thickness ranging from 1/6" to 1/4". Note: If you roll the dough out to 1/4", your yield of cookies will be reduced and your baking time might increase ever so slightly.
After cutting the dough in either round or fluted rounds (recommend using a 2" cookie or biscuit cutter), the cookies are baked on parchment paper lined baking sheets in a preheated 350 degree (F) oven for 12-13 minutes or until the bottoms are lightly golden. The cookies will (and should) hold their shape during the baking process allowing you to bake approximately 20 cookies at a time (leaving about an inch between them).
As soon as the cookies cool completely, you are ready to top them with the dulce de leche. If at all possible, use a pastry bag fitted with a medium-sized round pastry tip instead of spoon (or small knife) when placing dollops of the dulce de leche on the bottom (lightly browned side) of one of the cookies. Top with another cookie and very gently press the cookie sandwich together.
How much dulce de leche you fill the cookies with is simply a matter of taste preference. You might choose to have a thicker layer of dulce de leche than what you see here.
Serve a platter of the alfajores with some freshly brewed hot coffee or a tall glass of iced coffee any time of the day. They are bound to quickly disappear. And, if by chance the time change has left you a little sluggish this week, these cookies might be what re-energizes you.
Alfajores (Dulce De Leche filled sandwich cookies)
Makes approximately 32-34 (2" sized) cookie sandwiches
Recipe updated: February 2020
Ingredients
1 cup plus 2 Tablespoons (255g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups (156 g) confectionary sugar
1 large egg yolk, room temperature
2 teaspoons good quality vanilla
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 3/4 cups (358 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
13.4 ounce can of Dulce de Leche (or a similar sized jar of Salted Maple Caramel, see note below)
Optional: Additional confectionary sugar for sifting over the finished cookies
Directions
1. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter for 10-15 seconds. Scrape sides of the bowl.
2. Add in confectionary sugar and beat until light and fluffy (approximately 2 minutes).
3. Mix in egg yolk and vanilla. Beat only until incorporated.
4. Add in flour and salt. Mix until dough comes together and begins to form a ball.
5. Scrape dough onto a large sheet of plastic wrap. Flatten and shape into a 6" x 8" rectangle. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Updated note: If the dough is easy to work with right away, skip the chilling process and roll out. The dough can sometimes have a crumbly texture. Knead a large ball of dough until smooth (about 1 minute) before rolling out.
6. Preheat oven to 350 degree (F). Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
7. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Cut in half. Return one half back to the refrigerator.
8. Lightly flour a surface. Roll out the piece of dough to a thickness of approximately 1/6". Note: You could also roll the dough out to a thickness of 1/4".
9. Using a 2" round cookie cutter, cut out circles and place cookie rounds on a prepared baking sheet. Form scrapes of dough back into a ball to roll out to continue cutting out circles. If your dough is soft, chill your cookies in the refrigerator while you are rolling out the other half of the dough.
10. Rotating the pan midway through the baking process, bake the cookies for 12-13 minutes or until they are very lightly browned on the edges. Immediately transfer cookies to a cooling rack. Bake second tray of cookies, again transferring the baked cookies to a cooling rack. Allow the cookies to cool completely.
11. Spoon Dulce de Leche (or Salted Maple Caramel) in a pastry bag fitted with a medium sized, round, plain tip.
12. On the bottom or baked side of the cookie, pipe about a half-dollar sized amount of filling, leaving a slight border along the edge. Top cookie (top side up) to create a sandwich cookie. Lightly press and twist the cookies together.
13. Serve immediately or store in a tightly sealed container for 3-5 days. Note: Store cookies laying flat. Do not store cookies standing up.
Notes: (1) I used American Spoon's Salted Maple Caramel (9.5 ounce jar) the first time I made these cookies. However, I prefer using Dulce de Leche. You should be able to find Dulce de Leche in some grocery stores, in most Spanish grocery stores, or online. Dulce de Leche has a much thicker consistency than the caramel I used. (2) When placing cookies on the baking sheet, leave only one inch of space between them as they hold their shape and do not spread. (3) The more traditional Alfajores are finished with a dusting of confectionary sugar. (4) As an optional finish, lightly dust each cookie with some sifted confectionary sugar.