Alfajores de Chocolate (Argentine Chocolate-Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies) Recipe

Dipped in chocolate, these tender cocoa-flavored cookies are sandwiched with a generous dulce de leche filling.

By
María del Mar Cuadra
A headshot of Maria del Mar Cuadra, a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
María del Mar Cuadra
María del Mar Cuadra is a food stylist, recipe developer, and art director. She has written three cookbooks and worked for America's Test Kitchen.
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Updated January 24, 2024
A platter of Argentine Chocolate-Dulce de Leche Cookies.

Serious Eats / María del Mar Cuadra

Why It Works

  • A mix of all-purpose flour, cake flour, and cocoa powder produces a shortbread-like cookie.
  • To ensure tender cookies, just bake until the surface looks dry.
  • You can replace finely chopped chocolate (both semisweet and bittersweet) with chocolate chips for the coating.

While I wasn't looking to construct an exact replica of the Havanna brand alfajor negro (chocolate alfajor), I did want to satiate my craving for that sandwich cookie's subtle chocolate flavor, almond and citrus zest essence, cake-like texture, dulce de leche filling, and chocolate coating.

Havanna alfajores originated in a café bearing that name in Mar del Plata in the late 1940s. Arguably, the name is synonymous with "alfajor." Though it's available in some specialty shops and by mail order these days, when I was younger I had to rely on my parents' friends to bring a box when they traveled. Said box was bright yellow and sturdy—grown-up and sophisticated in my eyes—and each alfajor was wrapped in gold paper. Carefully denuding one of the prized cookies was a Bucketsian moment.

My recipe went through quite a few tests, the cookies steadily filling zipper-lock bags labeled with notes, "Too crumbly!" "You need to add more booze!" "Maybe you shouldn't use cornstarch?" (I'm an obsessive-compulsive note-taker and write to myself as if I were someone else entirely—a psych ward patient, perhaps.)

Adding cocoa powder to my plain alfajor recipe was a cheap shortcut and ultimately a flop; while I was looking for a shortbread-like texture in that version, here I needed a crumb more reminiscent of cake. These cookies are meant to be tender and thus should not be overbaked. The flavor is delicate cocoa, orange, honey, and almond, coated in chocolate, and naturally, generously filled with rich dulce de leche.

November 2011

Recipe Details

Alfajores de Chocolate (Argentine Chocolate-Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies) Recipe

Prep 20 mins
Cook 30 mins
Active 60 mins
Chilling Time 45 mins
Total 95 mins
Serves 18 sandwich cookies

Ingredients

For the Cookies:

  • 1 tablespoon brandy or cognac

  • 2 teaspoons instant coffee

  • 3/4 teaspoon almond extract

  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • 6 ounces (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened

  • 2/3 cup sugar

  • 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

  • 1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature

  • 4 teaspoons honey

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus additional for shaping dough

  • 1 cup cake flour

  • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the Filling:

  • 2 (13.4-ounce) cans dulce de leche (see note)

For the Coating:

  • 12 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (see note)

  • 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (60% cacao), finely chopped (see note)

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening

Directions

  1. For the Cookies: In a small bowl, combine brandy, coffee, almond extract, and vanilla. Set aside.

  2. Beat butter, sugar, confectioners’ sugar, and orange zest on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add honey and coffee mixture and beat just until combined, scraping sides and bottom of bowl with rubber spatula as needed.

  3. Sift flour, cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt over butter mixture and combine with rubber spatula until dough comes together. Press plastic wrap directly onto dough and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

  4. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.

  5. Once chilled, lightly coat fingers with flour and scoop 1-tablespoon portions of dough onto prepared baking sheets and pat down to about 2 1/2 inches in diameter (thickness will be about 1/4 inch).

  6. Bake cookies—one sheet at a time—until cookies are set and appear dry on the surface, 7 to 9 minutes. Transfer sheets to cooling rack and cool cookies until cool enough to handle, about 5 minutes. Transfer cookies directly to cooling rack and cool completely, about 15 minutes.

  7. For the Filling: Once cooled, spread half the cookies with 1 heaping tablespoon dulce de leche. Cover with remaining cookies.

  8. For the Coating: Melt semisweet and bittersweet chocolate and shortening in large metal bowl set over pot of simmering water (bottom of bowl should not make contact with surface of water). Stir with rubber spatula until chocolate is smooth and melted. Alternatively, combine chocolate and shortening in a large bowl and microwave 1 to 2 minutes until mixture is smooth, stopping microwave every 20 seconds to stir.

  9. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

  10. Carefully drop one sandwich cookie into the melted chocolate. With soup spoons, gently turn cookie to coat. Transfer cookie to prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining cookies.

  11. Transfer cookies to refrigerator and chill until set, 15 to 30 minutes.

Special Equipment

2 rimmed baking sheets, parchment paper, electric mixer, rubber spatula, sifter, plastic wrap, cooling rack, large saucepan, large metal bowl or large microwave-safe bowl, 2 soup spoons

Notes

You may have some leftover dulce de leche—refrigerate it in an airtight container or zipper-lock back and reserve it for another use. Even though the cookies are refrigerated to set the chocolate, they should be served at room temperature.

Read More

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
366 Calories
17g Fat
51g Carbs
6g Protein
×
Nutrition Facts
Servings: 18
Amount per serving
Calories 366
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 17g 22%
Saturated Fat 9g 47%
Cholesterol 49mg 16%
Sodium 102mg 4%
Total Carbohydrate 51g 18%
Dietary Fiber 2g 8%
Total Sugars 32g
Protein 6g
Vitamin C 1mg 4%
Calcium 89mg 7%
Iron 4mg 20%
Potassium 173mg 4%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

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