Double-Chocolate Alfajores with Dulce de Leche

Simplicity equals perfection in Argentina’s traditional sandwich cookie.

Yield: makes 12 alfajores

Time:

2 hours, 45 minutes

For the cookies:

• 7 tbsp. softened unsalted butter
• ½ cups sugar
• 1 tsp. finely grated orange zest
• ½ cups cornstarch
• 1 giant egg
• 1 tbsp. plus 1½ tsp. honey
• 1 tbsp. rum
• 1¾ cups cake flour, plus extra for dusting
• ¼ cups cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda

For filling and coating:

• 1½ cups dulce de leche
• 14 oz. semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (2¼ cups), melted and tempered*

Directions

1. Make the cookies: Within the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar, and orange zest on medium pace till mild and fluffy. Add the cornstarch, egg, honey, and rum and blend on low pace till mixed, utilizing a silicone spatula to scrape down the edges and backside of the bowl as wanted.
2. Into a big bowl, sift the cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and baking soda. With the mixer working on low pace, add the flour combination about half a cup at a time and proceed mixing till a dough varieties. Scrape down the edges and backside of the bowl and proceed mixing till all the dry components are included and the dough is homogenous. Frivolously flour a clear work floor and switch the dough out onto it. Divide into two items, type into 1-inch thick disks, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at the very least 1 and as much as 24 hours.
3. When you’re able to bake the cookies, preheat the oven (with one in every of its racks positioned within the heart) to 350°F. Line 2 giant baking sheets with parchment paper and put aside.
4. Retrieve the two items of dough from the fridge and unwrap. Frivolously flour a clear work floor and, working with one disk at a time, roll it out to a good ¼-inch thickness. Utilizing a 3-inch spherical cookie cutter and rerolling the scraps as wanted, punch out 24 cookies. Switch the cookies to the ready baking sheets spaced at the very least 1 inch aside. Bake the cookies one pan at a time, rotating the pan midway by means of cooking, till crisp and calmly browned, 8–10 minutes. Switch the cookies to a wire rack to chill utterly to room temperature earlier than filling.
5. When able to fill the cookies, return them to the baking sheet. Utilizing a piping bag or a giant spoon, prime half of the cookies with about 2 tablespoons of dulce de leche. Invert the opposite half of the cookies onto their dulce de leche-topped mates (Chocolate-coated alfajores are all the time filled with the tops of the cookies going through inward in direction of the filling; this makes it simple to stack them as soon as they’re totally cooled.) Gently squeeze the sandwiches collectively, then use a small silicone spatula to clean any extra filling from the sides.
6. Utilizing a pair of tongs or a big chocolate fork, dip the alfajores into the tempered melted chocolate, turning to coat and permitting any extra to drip again into the bowl. Set the cookies apart on contemporary parchment paper and till the chocolate has utterly set. Serve instantly or switch to an hermetic container. Alfajores preserve effectively for as much as 1 week.