ALFAJORES (CARAMEL-FILLED COOKIES)

MAKES ABOUT 35 BISCUIT SANDWICHES Preparation: 30-40 min Baking: 20 min 200 g butter, at room

temperature 160 ml (²⁄₃ c) white

sugar 300 g cake flour 100 g cornflour 3 egg yolks 30 ml (2 T) brandy

or milk 5 ml (1 t) vanilla

essence 5 ml (1 t) baking

powder finely grated rind of 1 lemon (avoid the pith at all costs) 250-500 ml (1-2 c)

dulce de leche or caramel-flavoured condensed milk 500 ml (2 c) desiccated coconut Preheat the oven to 150 °C. Grease a baking sheet with nonstick spray or line with baking paper. 1 Cream the butter and sugar together, then mix in the remaining ingredients except the dulce de leche (or caramel condensed milk) and coconut. 2 Knead on a floured surface until smooth. Cover with clingfilm and leave to rest for 15 minutes at room temperature. 3 Roll the dough out to a thickness of about 5 mm and cut into rounds 4 cm in diameter. 4 Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes (remove sooner if starting to brown). Transfer to a wire rack to cool. 5 Once cool, sandwich about 10 ml (2 t) dulce de leche (or caramel condensed milk) between two cookies. Use a knife to smooth extra caramel around the sides. 6 Roll in the coconut until the sides are generously covered. t – teaspoon/s T – tablespoon/s c – cup/s