This classic, South American alfajores recipe is filled with melt-in-your-mouth dulce de leche and rolled in shredded coconut. They are so soft, delicate, decadent, and so easy to make! You’ll love how the different textures come together to create an amazing cookie.
As far as I know, there are two ways of making alfajores: the Argentinean style and the American style. While the latter is usually made of a simple shortbread cookie, the classic Argentinean cookies are so much better in texture, and are the most melt-in-your-mouth cookies on this planet. Ok, that may be an exaggeration, but let me have my moment.
What are alfajores?
Alfajores are a classic Argentinian cookie filled with dulce de leche and rolled in coconut. Not only is this combination heavenly, but the cookie itself is extremely soft and tender.
The coconut adds a great flavor and cuts some of the sweetness, so I strongly suggest adding it. While you can make your own dulce de leche at home, I prefer using store-bought for these cookies because it really tastes just as good.
In this recipe, two ingredients to point out are cornstarch and egg yolks:
- Cornstarch: Adds a soft, melt-in-your mouth texture to the cookies.
- Egg yolks: I prefer using egg yolks instead of whole eggs because yolks help create an amazingly tender cookie.
How to make the best alfajores cookies
- Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl, including flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and baking soda.
- In a mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until the fluffy, about 3 minutes. This helps incorporate air into the cookies. If you see some of the butter stuck to the side of the bowl, use a rubber spatula to scrape it down.
- Slowly add the egg yolks and vanilla extract one at a time, mixing completely before adding the next. Don’t forget to scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to make sure all ingredients are fully incorporated.
- Lastly, add the dry ingredients in three additions, and mix until the dough just comes together.
- Let’s talk about the chilling time for these cookies. I know it can be frustrating when you just want your cookies and you want them now. Totally been there! But for cookies that hold their shape well and don’t spread out while baking, the dough has to be chilled long enough. For this recipe, you’ll need to chill the dough twice. The first time is once the dough has been made. It’ll be too soft for rolling, so you’ll need to chill it for 1-2 hours in the shape of a ball, until firm. The second chilling is before baking the cookies. Just place the sheet of cookies in the fridge or freezer until they’re firm, at least 15 minutes.
- Bake until the cookies are barely brown and remove from the oven. Once they are cooled, place a bit of dulce de leche in the middle of a cookie, and press down with another cookie forming a sandwich. Roll the exposed dulche de leche on the sides in coconut, and indulge.
Tips for making the best alfajores cookies
- When making the dough, if it feels dry, you can add a little bit of cold water or milk a little at a time, just until the dough comes together.
- Mix the dough just until the ingredients are combined. If mixing for a long time, the cookies can turn out tough from producing too much gluten. Overall, play with the dough as little as possible.
- While it can be tempting, don’t fill your alfajores with too much dulce de leche because the cookies may start to fall apart with too much filling.
More of the best cookie recipes:
- Hazelnut Nutella Sandwich Cookies: Rich and creamy Nutella is sandwiched between two delicious hazelnut butter cookies.
- Chocolate Sandwich Cookies: These chocolate cookies are so decadent yet delicate. The chocolate cookies are slightly soft and filled with smooth and creamy chocolate ganache.
- Giant Chocolate Chip Cookies: A chocolate chip cookie lovers’ dream. These cookies are soft and chewy in the middle but have crispy edges and are loaded with chocolate chips.
- Chewy Oatmeal Cookies: A wonderfully rich and chewy cookie made with oats and chocolate chips. A classic in my house!
- 1 1/2 cups (200g) all-purpose flour
- 2 1/8 cups (300g) cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 3/4 sticks (200g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar or 1 1/4 cups (150g) powdered sugar
- 3 large egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 350 g (12 oz.) dulce de leche, for filling
- 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded or desiccated coconut , for rolling
-
In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
-
In a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla extract just until combined. Reduce speed to low. Add the flour mixture and beat just until combined. Do not overmix or the cookies will turn out tough.
-
Form the dough into a ball, then flatten slightly to form a disc. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours, until firm enough to roll.
-
If you don’t want to use the dough right away, you can refrigerate it for up to 3 days or freeze it for up to a month, then thaw it overnight in the fridge.
-
Take the dough out of the fridge and let it sit on the counter for a few minutes to soften slightly for easy rolling. On a lightly floured surface (or between 2 pieces of parchment paper), roll the dough to a 1/8 or 1/4-inch (3-5mm) thickness. Cut out into rounds using a 2-inch (5cm) fluted or round cookie cutter, and place the cookies on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
-
If at any point the dough becomes too warm, place it back into the fridge for a few minutes. Re-roll the remaining scraps and repeat. Place sheets with cookies in the freezer or fridge for at least 15 minutes, until firm, so that they will be less prone to spreading.
-
Preheat oven to 350F/180C. Bake for 7-10 minutes, or until cookies appear golden brown at the edges. Allow cookies to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then gently transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
-
Spread the bottom half of the cookies with dulce de leche (about a teaspoon). Sandwich together with remaining cookies, pressing slightly so that the caramel oozes out the sides. Roll the sides in shredded coconut.
-
Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week or freeze for up to 2 months. To thaw, leave on the counter, still covered, or overnight in the fridge.
Tips for making the best alfajores cookies:
- When making the dough, if it feels dry, you can add a little bit of cold water or milk a little at a time, just until the dough comes together.
- Mix the dough just until the ingredients are combined. If mixing for a long time, the cookies can turn out tough from producing too much gluten. Overall, play with the dough as little as possible.
- While it can be tempting, don't fill your alfajores with too much dulce de leche because the cookies may start to fall apart with too much filling.
89 Comments
Heather
May 23, 2015 at 4:35 pmI cant wait to try these out! Ive been looking for a recipe for alfajores to make for my Colombian husband 🙂 Ive found a few recipies but i like how you give details on how to complete each step to make it fool proof! Great site.
Shiran
May 25, 2015 at 3:30 amThank you so much Heather! Definitely try these cookies! Even if they don’t turn out perfect for the first time, they would taste amazing for sure 🙂
Heidi Harris
December 30, 2020 at 9:27 pmYou did not mention how to make the dulce de leche. My mother is from Peru, where these cookies originated. It has been a long tradition to make alfajores during the Christmas holidays. My sister made them this year, and the cookies themselves bring back so many memories. Did you make the dulce de leche with condensed milk in the can? Just curious. 🙂
Shiran
January 5, 2021 at 3:27 amHi Heidi. Where I’m from it’s easy to find high quality store-bough dulce de leche. If you can’t get any then you should make it with condensed milk 🙂
Magdalena
December 11, 2022 at 4:20 pmSorry to correct you Heidi Harris, they are from Spain. The Spanish version of the ALFAJOR made its way to South America in the 16 th century with the invasion of Spanish conquistadores! I’m from Chile and the ALFAJOR is very popular in my country also.
Ysa
May 7, 2019 at 2:55 pmY the coconut? I’m Peruvian and we always top them with powder sugar? I’ve never heard of using coconut
Crista
September 29, 2019 at 7:25 amYSA, Alfajores aren’t eaten only in Peru so other places do them different. Alfajores are originally a Middle Eastern treat brought over by the Spaniards. South American’s adapted the recipe to create a more sweeter treat.
himavarsha sk
November 23, 2020 at 1:57 amHi this lovely recipe which i want to try. As we don’t eat eggs. Is it possible to suggest an alternative for them please.
Thanks in advance
SophiaBianca Pipho
December 22, 2022 at 7:54 pmHi my dough is very flaky and falling apart what should I do?!
Talia @ Pretty. Simple. Sweet.
December 25, 2022 at 2:45 amHi Sophia, you can add a bit of water or milk to add more moisture to bring the dough together 🙂
Isabel
December 13, 2019 at 12:23 amOur local Uruguayan restaurant uses coconut.
Camille
June 23, 2021 at 6:28 amI am no great baker. I work with Latino, Colombian women who buy these from local bakeries in their neighborhood. They said these were better than they ever tasted. I agree.
Cheska
May 23, 2015 at 5:49 pmThese look delicious! How do you think they’d hold when molded into a kiss shape? I’m trying to recreate the dulce de leche kisses from Porto’s bakery, and I feel like yours is one worth trying 😀
Shiran
May 25, 2015 at 3:28 amHi Cheska! The dulce de leche kisses look beautiful! However, I’m not sure if the dough will work for those cookies. Maybe Google ‘filled cookies’ to come up with some ideas!
nicole (thespicetrain.com)
June 2, 2015 at 4:47 pmOh my goodness, they look absolutely divine! Beautiful photography, too, gorgeous light and styling.
Izola
August 9, 2016 at 9:10 pmThanks for the recipe. Made these cookies today and they were just great! Can’t get over how tender they were.
Shiran
August 10, 2016 at 8:12 amThank you, Izola!
Taylor
May 9, 2017 at 11:39 pmI just made the dough but I wasn’t sure how dry / wet the dough should be? Initially it was a bit sandy but I added a little water (didn’t want to add too much)… do you know what the consistency of dough should be like? It still seemed a little dry.
Shiran
May 14, 2017 at 5:22 amAlfajores dough is quite soft. As with any other dough, if it’s crumbly add a bit of water, or if too wet, a bit of flour, until it comes together. It’s also important to chill the dough, otherwise it would be too soft to work with.
Libby Folet
November 26, 2017 at 12:02 amYour recipe is as close to my ex sister in law.
Such delicious biscuits..
After my experience purchasing a couple from a local patisserie today I knew I had to come home and bake!! I’m pretty excited to taste the final product!!!
Iva
December 14, 2017 at 1:28 pmBest recipe for alfajores dough ive ever had….super easy to handle. Thank u so much!!!! Ive teied many recioes and this is the best!
Iva
December 14, 2017 at 2:58 pmGreat recipe! My coworkers are going nuts over them right now!!!!
Shiran
December 15, 2017 at 6:52 amI’m so glad!! Thank you so much Iva!
Daniell
April 13, 2018 at 10:59 amWe’ve tried many recipes for alfajores over the years but my mom agreed that hands-down, this recipe has been the best so far. The cookies come out with just the right amount of crumble and are absolutely delicious. Love how the lemon and coconut play off each other, gives the sandwiches a bright twist!
Lily
May 17, 2018 at 7:40 pmHow much is 1 and 3/4 stick of butter in cups?
Shiran
May 18, 2018 at 3:11 pmThat’s 14 tablespoons (or 1 cup minus 2 tablespoons).
Miri
July 3, 2018 at 5:56 amThe most tender cookies I’ve ever had. Thank you!
Heather K Le
November 28, 2018 at 9:07 pmI just made these and it was amaaaazzzinnnnggg! All my friends want me to make more 🙂 Quick question though, I have a gluten intolerant friends, what gluten-free flour can I substitute the AP flour for? I really don’t want to mess with the texture of the cookies too much 🙁
Shiran
November 29, 2018 at 1:26 pmSorry Heather but I have no experience baking with gluten-free flour.
Rachel
December 20, 2018 at 3:55 pmCan this dough be made ahead of time and put in the freezer or fridge for a couple of days?
Shiran
December 21, 2018 at 2:49 pmYes it can!
Sombody
February 19, 2019 at 12:42 pmCan I sub butter with olive oil?
Shiran
February 20, 2019 at 7:19 amThis recipe won’t work with olive oil.
Constanza
March 10, 2019 at 8:57 pmHi! I put the dough in the fridge for several hours and it’s so hard that I can’t roll it. Also it falls apart in little pieces:(
Shiran
March 12, 2019 at 5:24 amI mention in the recipe that if the dough is hard to roll just let it sit on the counter for several minutes to soften.
Axely
May 25, 2023 at 2:34 pmUgh same thing happened to me, and I’m not one to read the full story before the recipe so I didn’t see that it may need to add milk or water if too dry. Maybe they should add that to the actual recipe. Since not all of us like the long story before the recipe.
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet.
June 1, 2023 at 1:47 pmHi Axely, thank you for your suggestion. I have added the helpful tips into the recipe notes on these cookies.
Chalani
April 28, 2019 at 1:06 pmWhat is the difference between using icing sugar and granulated sugar?
Sam
May 2, 2019 at 5:32 pmHi Shiran! Do you prefer using granulated or powdered sugar in the dough? Also, I’ve seen recipes that use tapioca starch in the dough to avoid the aftertaste associated with cornstarch. Is the cornstarch detectable in this cookie?
Shiran
August 18, 2019 at 7:02 amHi Sam, I prefer powdered sugar because it gives a more melt-in-your-mouth texture. I think that with the coconut and caramel flavors, you won’t be able to taste to cornstarch that much, so for me that’s ok.
matt
May 9, 2019 at 9:28 amreally good
Caroline
May 21, 2019 at 10:57 amhow many cookies does this make?
Kat
June 3, 2019 at 10:44 pmDelicious cookies! I couldn’t find dolce de leche so I found a recipe that boiled sweetened condensed milk in the can…..it was amazing how well it worked. My son picked these for a video for his Spanish class. I followed the directions as written and I didn’t have any problems. Thanks for such a detailed recipe. I’m sure I’ll make them often!
Stephen Moss
July 30, 2019 at 11:31 pmI found dulce de leche in the ethnic food aisle
Emie
August 17, 2019 at 9:33 pmThe powdered sugar is for sprinkling on top or for the dough?
Shiran
August 18, 2019 at 7:05 amHi Emie, the sugar is not for sprinkling. You can use either granulated sugar or powdered sugar for the cookie dough.
PVT
October 2, 2019 at 12:03 pmPls can u gv me an egg substitute especially for this delicious recipe ?
Ericka Alecio
November 12, 2019 at 2:55 pmBanana
Ericka Alecio
November 12, 2019 at 2:55 pmPVT I use banana as eggs substitutes
riya
November 20, 2019 at 7:11 pmhi do you have to use/put lemon in?
Shiran
November 24, 2019 at 3:06 amNo, it’s optional.
Miss Nidhi Subhashchandra Patel
November 21, 2020 at 8:31 pmI do not see lemon in the ingredients. ?? Can you tell me how much lemon to add??
Shiran
November 22, 2020 at 4:24 amIn the updated recipe I don’t use lemon.
Nidhi Patel
November 27, 2020 at 7:43 amYet if i wanted to use lemon zest how much should that be?
Shiran
November 30, 2020 at 4:53 amI used 1/2 to 1 teaspoon.
Jane Doe
March 1, 2020 at 6:33 pmno, we did not put lemon cuz we used all of our extra money buying CORN STARCH! 😉
Jae Astin
November 22, 2019 at 9:48 pmI made these for a group project on Peru for a Business Culture class and came home with very few left over! A handful of my classmates asked for the recipe for it, having loved it so much! Definitely going to make again! I did however mix a little bit of buttercream in the dulce de leche (just so I had a little bit of an easier time piping it on the cookie cause I was afraid to accidentally crush the cookies). My family swiftly devoured the remaining ones shortly after. Definitely a new Christmas cookie at least!
Anna
December 4, 2019 at 8:31 pmDelicious and great texture. Excluded the lemon, but otherwise followed the recipe as directed using granulated sugar. My dough was extremely crumbly and dry – added water by a little at a time… probably added 1/2 – 3/4 cup. It was that dry! Eventually got it to a consistency where it could be rolled. Had to add additional water to the dough when rolling it additional times since it absorbed the dusting flour. Make it! You won’t be disappointed!
Jen
December 11, 2019 at 2:28 pmDelicious cookie that melts in your mouth!!! I just really had to fight with the dough. It was either quite hard to roll and would crumble, or too warm and sticky. The battle was worth it though! These cookies are delicious!
Jen
December 11, 2019 at 10:52 pmGreat cookies! The dough I thought looked dry. So I added a few TBS of water and used the technique suggested between parchment paper to roll and voila! They were easy to roll, baked perfectly, and are super light in texture. I’m waiting for the Dulce de Leche sauce in my crockpot to finish overnight and will complete the cookies tomorrow AM. So easy and my 11 year old son helped me!
Lorraine
August 18, 2020 at 3:22 amHow much water is it safe to add. I’ve had 2 failed attempts because the dough is too dry even after adding more butter.
Shiran
August 23, 2020 at 5:49 amYou can add 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time.
Hannah
February 1, 2020 at 4:39 pmthese are really good, but took a little longer than 10 minutes to cook!
help please
February 11, 2020 at 9:32 amhow many does this make??? please answer
Shiran
March 3, 2020 at 5:26 amThe recipe makes about 35 2-inch cookie sandwiches.
Ana
July 30, 2020 at 5:33 pmI’m Latin American and by common Latin Knowledge I know that the authentic cookie doesn’t contain BS nor BP because the cookie is not supposed to spread or grow. Can I leave out these ingredients to have a non spread cookie?
Shiran
August 20, 2020 at 5:46 amLeaving them out will affect the texture of the cookie and it won’t be as soft.
Carleigh
February 13, 2020 at 9:25 pmThank you for the recipe! My boyfriend is Argentinian and always talks about these so I figured I would give them a try for Valentines Day. They taste very good! I dipped half in chocolate and made half the regular way and they look great. Hopefully he thinks so too tomorrow!
Jane Doe
March 1, 2020 at 6:31 pmWe first tried to create this typical hispanic dish but the corn starch amount was tremendous! Later the dough, was at a strange consistency where it looked/felt like sand. I thought I was at a beach(not in a good way.) I restarted. After conquering doe, i added water to create a mystical ball that really completed the crumble to the max. In the end we had leftover doe and made doe babies. The babies tasted real good. We had some chunky cookies but taste was on point. Thank you very much for my chunky yummy dry baby cookies.
Nicole
July 3, 2020 at 4:03 pmHI I was wondering why did my cookie dought came out very sandy? I added water afterwards but I was just wondering the reason for the cookie dought to come out very dry and sandy?
Thankyou for the recipe!!
Shiran
July 12, 2020 at 5:26 amSometimes it happens and it depends on the type of flour. As long as you’ve added more water and it was ok, then there’s no issue 🙂
Daniela
July 27, 2020 at 3:26 amI suggest to use a bit less cornstarch so the final dough is not that sandy. Also, by using icing sugar instead of caster sugar, the icing sugar we buy from supermarkets have already a small quantity of corn starch added in the mix . I don’t think adding water is a good solution, by using water the texture of the alfajores will change as initially the recipe has no water (except the water contained in the butter), so the biscuit won’t be very ‘melt in your mouth’ anymore but a tougher texture.
namrota
July 28, 2020 at 2:01 pmI am dying to try this recipe. I don’t have a paddle attachment, can I first whisk the butter and sugar and then later simply fold in the other ingredients using a spatula?
Shiran
July 29, 2020 at 9:39 amIf you have a hand mixer you can use it with the whisk attachment.
Siv
August 4, 2020 at 11:23 pmCan’t wait to make these! Any idea if coconut oil will work fine instead of butter? Thank you!
Shiran
August 20, 2020 at 5:44 amI recommend sticking to butter for the best result.
Heather
September 9, 2020 at 3:23 pmI made these today, with powdered sugar and minus the lemon, and the texture was perfect! My kids loved them! My concern was that the taste of cornstarch was very obvious and left a strong aftertaste. What brand cornstarch do you use? Also, can I replace maybe a ½ cup of cornstarch with flour and still have the same texture? Thanks!
Shiran
October 4, 2020 at 3:03 amHi Heather. I don’t use a specific brand. Usually when there’s enough filling and coconut, you shouldn’t be able to taste the cornstarch. The cookies have that much cornstarch for that melt-in-your-mouth texture.
Mingie
December 1, 2020 at 9:43 amThis was probably one of the more difficult cookies I’ve made (I’m so used to drop cookies where you just shape them into balls), but definitely worth the effort. I think the flavor got better after a few days of sitting in the fridge after assembling. Definitely don’t try to eat it right away, I think you still taste that cornstarchy cookie taste. Thanks for the great recipe!
Lori
December 15, 2020 at 12:51 pmNo salt?
Susana Natalia Guido
August 21, 2021 at 11:34 amI’ve been mading this recipe since I am 10 years old, I am Argentinian so we call this recipe alfajores de Maizena, because there are different types of recipes with variations according to the countryside you are. But for this recipe I’d strongly recommend you to put 2 tablespoons of lemon zest to the Doug. This make an enormous difference. Thanks.
Susana Natalia Guido
August 21, 2021 at 11:44 amAnd another thing my mom taught me is to add the amount of regular flour and cornstarch and divided for two and use the same amount of each other. This made the cookies less fragile and doesn’t change the flavour.
Lea
November 27, 2021 at 5:35 pmThe recipe is great and has good instructions but the alfajores are not argentinian but Peruvian.
Talia @ Pretty. Simple. Sweet.
November 28, 2021 at 10:34 pmHi Lea, so glad you enjoyed the recipe! Alfajores were brought to South America originally from Spain, they have multiple origins 🙂
Lori
December 7, 2021 at 7:03 pmDelicious cookie! Definitely needed more water
Donna McFadden
December 28, 2022 at 2:48 pmI made these for Christmas and they were divine! I usually make them with flour, but tried this recipe because I couldn’t find my other recipe. These were great! The dough was very sandy, but I just kneaded it a little bit more without adding water. I roll out the dough to about 1/4-1/2 ” inch, since 1/8″ was too thin for me to get onto the cookie sheet without losing it’s shape. My sister in law from Peru loved them!!
Talia @ Pretty. Simple. Sweet.
December 29, 2022 at 2:18 amHi Donna, that’s so great to hear! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Suzanne
February 11, 2023 at 10:13 amHi. I’m not sure how these are supposed to taste. I made mistake… when beating the sugar and butter together, I had the egg yolks with it and beat these 3 ingredients together at same time😞. It was supposed to be just the sugar and butter THEN add eggs yolks. They baked just fine. I also omitted salt since I used salted butter. The cookie is pretty bland tasting without the filling. Wondering if this is typical or did I ruin recipe by my mistakes? Thoughts??
Stephanie @ Pretty.Simple.Sweet.
April 5, 2023 at 6:00 pmHi Suzanne, The cookies are a little more bland so that the filling is the star of the show. Possibly the flavors were affected by not creaming together just sugar and butter first. Adding salt separately does help to ensure the right amount is used. Possibly they needed a little more salt than what was in your salted butter?