Goodbye roomie!

This summer, a student from Mexico came to Canada to study English, and she stayed at my apartment. I loved to have her around, and it was often amusing trying to communicate using exaggerated gestures when language wouldn't suffice. Sadly, tomorrow is her last day in Canada! She is heading back to home to Mexico as her summer semester has now ended. I didn't think it would be right to send her home with a proper send off! So I baked her some Dulce de leche sandwich cookies.

Granted, these are much more indulgent than I would make on any normal day, but I thought they would be well suited or this occasion.

Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies

     recipe from Baking: from my home to yours
     makes 30 sandwich cookies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup store-bought dulce de leche, plus more for filling
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and position a rack in the upper third of the oven.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fit with a paddle attachment, beat the butter at medium speed until just softened and broken up a bit.  Add the 3/4 cup dulce de leche, brown sugar and granulated sugar.  Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating to incorporate.
Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients all at once.  Mix only until the flour is just incorporated.  You may need to finish off the mixing with a big spatula.
Spoon the dough onto the lined baking sheets using a heaping teaspoon of dough for each cookie.  The dough will be soft and this might be a bit messy.  Leave 2 inches of space between each cookie for the baking spread.
Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes.  The cookies will be honey brown with a light crust, but still very soft when they come out of the oven.  Let them rest on the cookie sheet for a minute or two before removing to cool.
Once the cookies are cooled completely, spread them with dulce de leche and sprinkle with a bit of sea salt if you like.  Keep well wrapped for up to four days.


For those who don't know exactly what Dulce de leche is, here's a little wikipedia explanation:

Dulce de leche is a thick, caramel-like milk-based sauce or spread.

Literally translated, dulce de leche means "milk candy", though it could less literally be described as "milk jam." It is prepared by slowly heating sweetened milk to create a product that derives its taste from caramelized sugar. Its origin is widely debated and it remains popular throughout Latin America

Happy living,
~Princess