Alfajores sandwich luscious caramel dulce de leche between delicate, buttery shortbread cookies for a melt-in-your-mouth experience where simplicity meets indulgence! Enjoy these sandwich cookies as a sweet afternoon treat or dessert.
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Why you'll love these Argentine Alfajores
- These cookies master the contrast of tender, melt-in-your-mouth shortbread and luxuriously creamy dulce de leche. Each bite delivers a perfect balance of buttery sweetness and caramel richness that keeps you reaching for more.
- The flavors in Alfajores deepen as they sit, letting the dulce de leche meld with the cookies. That's if they even last until the next day!
- With just a handful of pantry staples (flour, butter, sugar, and dulce de leche), this recipe is super easy - no fancy techniques or hard-to-find ingredients required.
- While add-ins like cinnamon or coconut can add flair, sometimes the classic version is all you need. Alfajores cookies prove that elegance can exist alongside simplicity.
What are Alfajores
"Alfajores" are a classic South American treat consisting of two tender, crumbly shortbread-like cookies sandwiching a luscious layer of dulce de leche.
Originating in Spain but also adopted into tradition in countries like Argentina, Peru, and Uruguay, they often feature a dusting of powdered sugar or a coconut coating for extra texture.
The cookies are delicately sweet with a melt-in-your-mouth consistency, while the caramelized dulce de leche adds creamy richness. They're typically served as an afternoon treat or dessert, and have become an indulgence enjoyed across Latin America and beyond.
Today, I'm using a simple shortbread cookie dough whipped up in a food processor and canned dulce de leche for convenience - cause let's face it, no one has time to make dulce de leche from scratch, especially during the busy holiday seasons!
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour: Spoon and level to avoid overly dense and dry cookies. You'll need a little more to flour your work surface.
- Confectioner's sugar: Added to the flour mixture to sweeten the shortbread cookie dough.
- Butter: Use chilled unsalted butter, cut into cubes for making classic shortbread cookie dough. Since these cookies are practically all about butter, you really should splurge and buy the premium stuff - it's worth it!
- Water: Adds the right amount of moisture to these cookies. You could use milk instead, if you prefer, but these cookies already have a high fat content.
- Sugar: I've used Turbinado sugar for sprinkling over half of the cookie rounds, adding just the right amount of crunch and subtle sweetness.
- Dulce de leche - You'll need one can, which you can find in the Mexican food section or baking section (near sweetened condensed milk) of most grocery stores. Using canned dulce de leche is great for convenience. Of course, feel free to make yours from scratch if you have the time and desire.
How to make alfajores
Prepare the baking sheet:
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Set it aside.
Make the dough:
In a food processor, pulse the flour and confectioners' sugar until combined.
Add the cold butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal (about 20 seconds).
With the machine still running, slowly pour in the water in a steady stream and process just until the dough comes together (about 20 seconds).
Chill the dough:
Divide the dough into two equal portions and shape each into a flattened disk. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Roll and cut the dough:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly flour a clean work surface and roll out one disk of dough to about ¼-inch thickness.
Using a 1¾-inch round cookie cutter, cut out as many rounds as possible and transfer them to the prepared baking sheet. Repeat this process with the second disk of dough. Gather the scraps, reroll, and cut additional rounds.
Add sugar and bake:
Sprinkle half of the rounds with sanding sugar. These will be the tops of the cookie sandwiches. Bake the rounds until golden brown (about 15 minutes), rotating the baking sheet halfway through for even baking. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
Assemble the cookies:
Just before serving, spread a thin layer of dulce de leche on the flat side of each unsugared cookie. Gently press a sugared cookie on top to form a cookie sandwich.
Serving
Enjoy these Alfajores as a stand alone treat or pair them with the obvious choice of Coconut Dulce de Leche Ice Cream! Salted Chocolate Ice Cream or Browned Butter Caramel Ice Cream would also be great options.
Enjoy these scrumptious cookies alongside this Boozy Coffee Milkshake or perhaps a hot beverage instead.
Tips and variations
- Storage: Once assembled with the dulce de leche filling, these Alfajores should be enjoyed immediately. They will start to soften due to the moist filling. Unfilled cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. Leftover dulce de leche should be stored in a separate airtight container and kept refrigerated.
- Optional add-ins: For extra flavor and texture, fold in chopped toasted nuts (pecans, almonds, or hazelnuts), shredded coconut, cinnamon, chai spice, or vanilla bean paste.
- Gluten-free: Use a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend instead of regular all-purpose flour to make gluten-free sandwich cookies.
- Chill the dough: Chilling shortbread dough solidifies the butter, preventing spread and ensuring a tender, crumbly texture, while also enhancing the flavor and making the dough easier to handle.
- Cool before assembling: Make sure that the cookies are completely cool before assembling or the heat will soften the dulce de leche, making it ooze out of the cookie sandwich or absorb into the shortbread, losing its creamy texture and softening the cookies.
- Cookie size: You can make larger sandwich cookies, but then you'll end up with fewer cookies. You may also need to adjust the baking time slightly when making larger cookies.
- Don't overmix: Mix the dough ingredients until just combined and no more or you will create dense cookies.
- Finishing touches: For an extra touch of flair, roll the edges of your assembled cookies in shredded coconut or dust with powdered sugar!
More delicious cookie recipes you'll love
Equipment
- round cookie cutter
- baking sheet
Ingredients
- 4 cups all-purpose flour plus more for work surface
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
- 1 ½ cup unsalted butter use the best butter you can find - this is a cookie that is literally all about the butter, so splurge and get the European butter, it makes a difference and you won't be sorry
- ½ cup water
- 1 tablespoon Turbinado sugar for sprinkling
- 13.4 oz can of dulce de leche you can find this in the Mexican food section of the grocery store or the baking section near the sweetened condensed milk
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment or foil.
- In a food processor, pulse together flour and confectioners sugar. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about 20 seconds. With machine running, pour in the water in a slow steam and process just until the dough comes together, about 20 seconds. Form the dough into 2 flattened disks and wrap well in plastic. Refrigerate 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Flour your counter or work service and roll out one of the disks of dough to a about ¼-inch thickness. Using a 1 ¾-inch round cookie cutter, cut out rounds from dough and transfer to prepared baking sheet. Do the exact same thing with the other disk of dough. Gather up the scraps from both batches, and reroll and cut. Sprinkle half the rounds with sanding sugar - these will be the top of the cookie sandwich. Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Right before serving, spread 1 or 2 teaspoons of the dulce de leche on bottom of unsugared cookies. Place sugared cookies on top to make sandwiches. Unfilled cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days. Remaining dulce de leche can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator as well.
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