Alfajores

Alfajores are a common treat through much of South America, and the citizens of Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Chile all claim them as their own. It is an easy cookie to make, and you can enlist the help of the younger cooks in the house during the final assembly.

12 tablespoons butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
2 egg yolks
2 tablespoons cognac
2 1/2 cups cornstarch (corn flour)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Zest of 1/2 lemon
Dulce de Leche
Grated coconut

* Dulce de leche is becoming more widely available in US supermarkets, and can be found in any good Hispanic market.

Cream the butter and sugar together. Add the remaining ingredients except the dulce de leche and coconut and mix well. Turn onto a floured work surface and knead until the dough is smooth. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes.

Roll the dough out to a thickness of about 1/4 inch and cut into 2-inch rounds. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake in a preheated 300 degree F oven for 20 minutes. When cool, spread some dulce de leche on the bottom of half the cookies and make a sandwich with the remaining cookies. Squeeze the sandwiches so that some of the dulce de leche is squeezed out the sides, and roll the sides in the grated coconut. Makes about 12 cookie sandwiches.

Dulce de Leche:
Pour 1 can sweetened condensed milk into 9-inch pie plate. Cover with aluminum foil; place in larger shallow pan. Fill larger pan with hot water. Bake at 425 degrees F for 1 hour or until thick and caramel-colored. Beat until smooth.