Author Notes
I solved the "problem" of having a glut of organic milk on hand by deciding to make dulce de leche the old-school way. When I found myself with the ensuing "problem" of too much dulce de leche, I found that these cookies were an easy, crowd-pleasing answer. The last step of this recipe explains how to store the cookies, but they'll probably be gone before you can say "airtight container." —vvvanessa
Ingredients
- Dulce de Leche
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1 quart
full-fat organic milk
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1/2-3/4 cups
sugar (turbinado or another, less-refined sugar is preferable)
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scant 1/2 teaspoons
baking soda
- Sugar Cookies
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1 1/2 cups
all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling out the dough
-
1/2 cup
cornstarch or non-glutinous rice flour
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1/2 teaspoon
baking powder
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1/2 cup
unsalted butter at room temperature
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1 cup
granulated sugar
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1/2 teaspoon
table salt
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1
large egg, lightly beaten at room temperature
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2 tablespoons
milk or cream
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1 teaspoon
vanilla extract
Directions
- Dulce de Leche
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In a heavy- bottomed sauce pan with at least a 2-quart capacity, dissolve the sugar in the milk over medium-high heat.
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Once the sugar is dissolved, stir in the baking soda.
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Bring the milk to a near-boil, taking much care not to let it boil over. Just as it's coming to a boil, lower the heat to low and allow the mixture to simmer uncovered for 1-2 hours, stirring often (a silicone spoon or spatula is especially handy for this job). It should look like it's simmering a bit vigorously but not actually be at a full boil.
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Remove the pan from the heat when the milk becomes a dark golden color and appears quite thick. A good test to know when it's done is to stir the mixture with a spoon and run your finger along the back of the spoon (careful-- it's hot!); the trail your finger leaves should last several seconds before slowly disappearing.
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Allow dulce de leche to cool to room temperature.
- Sugar Cookies
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In a small bowl, whisk together the flours and baking powder.
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In separate bowl, cream butter, sugar, and salt.
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Add egg, milk, and vanilla to the sugar mixture; mix well.
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Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, and mix until incorporated.
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Shape dough into a few smaller portions, flatten into discs, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until stiff, at least one hour or overnight.
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Heat oven to 350ºF degrees. Line cookie sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
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Roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut into shapes and move to baking sheets (cookies won't spread much so they can be set quite close together).
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Re-roll and re-cut dough scraps giving dough a bit more time in the fridge as necessary.
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Bake cookies until lightly golden, about 10 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
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To assemble the cookies, spread a 1/4-1/2 teaspoon of cooled dulce de leche on the flat side of the cookie and use another cookie, flat side in, to complete the sandwich.
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Store any unused dulce de leche in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
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Store cookies in an airtight containter at room temperature.
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