Alfajores

Alfajores

Alfajores are a type of Peruvian cookie.  They are made of two shortbread like cookies made with ground walnuts, not too sweet, filled with a dulce de leche filling and gently dusted with confectioner’s sugar. 

One of my patients knows that I love them and made a whole tin of them for me yesterday. 

Alfajores are NOT easy to make.  They are delicate and dry and easily burned.  Getting the shortbread biscuit part just right is an art.  I have tried to make them myself.  Let’s just say they were not the most successful cookie I’ve ever made. 

Alfajores are also my husband’s favorite cookie, which was my saving grace.  Those cookies were in their tin in the car on the way home from the office.  I managed not to eat any at all until I got into the car.  There’s something about being in the car with forbidden foods that causes me to lose all hope of forbearance. 

As I bit into the cookie, my teeth sunk gently into the dry,soft cookie.  The powdered sugar fell onto my tongue with a tease.  The cookie was buttery, and walnut-y and coated my mouth.  Then, there was the sweet and creamy caramel  of the dulce de leche intertwined with the cookie.  I savored the sensations of the sweet, the creamy, the nutty and the buttery as they all combined in my mouth.  I let the cookie linger on my tongue so I could really enjoy it, knowing what a rare treat it was. 

I couldn’t stop at one. 

In the past, I wouldn’t have been able to stop at all, and would have eaten four or five of the rich cookies before I got home.  This time, I stopped at two. 

My husband and children were thrilled to have an entire tin of the delicate treats.  I haven’t had any more.  They just left to go to New York for Thanksgiving.  I haven’t looked to see how many are left because I’m trying to save my Weight Watcher’s Points for Cornish Game Hens tomorrow at my friend’s house. 

Happy Thanksgiving.  I hope you all have the opportunity to have GOOD alfajors at some point in your lives.