Alfajor Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and baking powder; set aside.
• Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time, allowing each yolk to blend into the butter mixture before adding the next. Beat in the vanilla rum, vanilla extract, lemon extract, and lemon zest with the last egg. Gently fold in the flour mixture with a spoon, making a crumbly dough. When the dough becomes cohesive enough, press it together into a ball with your hands. Wrap with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Roll out the dough, using as little flour as possible, about 1/4 inch thick. The dough will have an unusual consistency. Cut with a small round cookie cutter. Continue pressing the dough together, rolling it out, and cutting until you have used it all. Place cookies 1/2 inch apart on the prepared cookie sheets.
• Bake in the preheated oven until set but not browned, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove the cookies immediately to cool on a wire rack.
• Spread the underside of a cooled cookie with a teaspoon of dulce de leche, then sandwich together with another cookie until the caramel oozes out the sides. Roll the sides in the shredded coconut.

Steps:

• Make the dulce de leche: Bring a large pot of water to a boil, then carefully lower condensed milk cans on their sides into the water. Simmer for 3 hours 15 minutes, refilling with hot water as needed to keep cans submerged. Never let the water boil away, or the cans could burst. Using tongs, transfer cans to a rack to let cool completely before opening.
• In a small bowl, combine brandy, lemon zest and 1 teaspoon vanilla.
• In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add yolks and beat to combine, then add brandy mixture and beat until just combined. Add flour mixture, and mix on low speed until the dough just comes together.
• Divide the dough in half and roll each piece into a log about 1 1/2 inches thick. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, at least 2 hours.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper. Remove dough from plastic wrap and slice into 1/8-inch-thick rounds. Place on prepared sheet pans, then bake until edges start to turn golden, about 7 minutes. Transfer each pan to a rack to cool completely.
• In a small bowl, combine dulce de leche with remaining 1 teaspoon vanilla and a large pinch of salt. Spoon the mixture into a plastic zipper bag and cut a corner off. (Or you could scoop it into a pastry bag if you prefer, or just use a spoon.)
• Flip half of the cookies upside down and pipe a thick layer of dulce de leche onto bottoms (or use a spoon to spoon the mixture on). Top with remaining cookies to sandwich the dulce de leche in the middle. Roll sides in coconut. Eat right away, or store in the refrigerator until serving.

Steps:

• Combine the flour, corn flour and baking powder together in a bowl with a pinch of salt. Using a food mixer or an electric whisk in another bowl beat the butter together with the sugar and lemon zest until very pale. Add the egg yolks followed by the Cognac and vanilla extract. Beat in the dry ingredients until you have smooth dough. Wrap the dough in clingfilm and chill for a minimum of 1 hour. You can make the biscuit dough the day before and leave in the fridge.
• Line two large baking trays with baking parchment. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a pound coin then cut out 60 biscuits with a 5cm round or fluted cutter. Put the biscuits back in the fridge for 20 mins to firm up.
• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Bake the biscuits for 8 mins until just set. You want the biscuits to stay pale with a crumbly texture. Leave to cool completely before sandwiching two biscuits together with a spoonful of dulce de leche. Once all the biscuits are sandwiched together roll in desiccated coconut.

Steps:

• Beat butter with a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment on medium speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of bowl as needed, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating until incorporated after each addition, about 30 seconds.
• Whisk together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl until combined. Add flour mixture to butter mixture in 3 additions, alternating alternately with the milk, starting and ending with the flour mixture, and beat until combined after each addition.
• Turn dough out onto a floured work surface and turn to coat dough. Knead dough 2 or 3 times. Divide dough into 5 equal pieces and shape each piece into a ball. Working with 1 ball at a time, roll dough into a 7-inch circle. Place dough circles on 2 large rimmed baking sheets lined with parchment paper (I fit 3 circles on 1 sheet and 2 on the other). Chill dough circles, uncovered, for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Prick each dough circle lightly with a fork.
• Bake in the preheated oven until browned on bottom and light browned around the edges, 15 to 18 minutes. (If baking in 2 batches, keep second batch refrigerated while first batch bakes.) Cool cake layers completely on a wire rack, about 30 minutes.
• Spoon dulce de leche into a medium bowl. Beat cream with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, about 6 minutes. Gently stir half of cream mixture into dulce de leche until combined. Gently fold remaining cream into dulce de leche mixture until combined.
• Spread 1/3 cup of the dulce de leche mixture onto 1 cake layer, spreading to edges. Place onto a serving platter with dulce de leche mixture facing up. Repeat process with the next 3 cake layers (this is easier to spread on cake layers before placing on platter). Spread remaining 2/3 cup dulce de leche mixture onto fifth cake layer and place on top. Let stand 1 hour. Dust top of cake with powdered sugar and serve. Cover any leftovers with plastic wrap and store in refrigerator up to 1 day.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg yolks and extract. In another bowl, whisk flour, cornstarch, cocoa, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Shape dough into a disk; wrap. Refrigerate until firm enough to roll, 2 hours., Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 2-in. round cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on greased baking sheets., Bake just until set, 5-7 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely., Spread dulce de leche on bottoms of half of the cookies; cover with remaining cookies. Press edges into coconut. Refrigerate in airtight containers.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or nonstick baking mats; set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, and continue mixing until well combined, about 1 minute. Working in batches, add flour mixture; mix until well combined. Add milk, orange juice, and vanilla; continue mixing until a dough forms, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Using a tablespoon or a small ice cream scoop, drop dough onto prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Transfer to oven and bake, rotating baking sheets halfway through baking, until golden, 10 to 14 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack until completely cool.
• When cookies have cooled completely, spread the bottoms of half of the cookies with dulche de leche, cajeta, or jam; sandwich together with remaining cookies. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Just before serving, lightly sprinkle with confectioners' sugar, if desired.