Dulce De Leche Chocolate Parfait Recipes

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE TART WITH DULCE DE LECHE

Steps:

• Special equipment: 9-inch fluted tart pan with removable bottom
• Crust: Whisk the flour, cocoa, salt and baking soda together in a medium bowl. Put the butter, confectioners' and brown sugar in a food processor and process until smooth and creamy. Add the dry ingredients and pulse to combine. Add the egg yolks and continue to pulse to make a smooth dough. Remove the blade, and turn dough out onto a large sheet of plastic wrap, form into a disk, and wrap tightly. Refrigerate at least 1 hour or up to 2 days.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: Put the chocolate in a medium bowl. Put the cream and sweetened condensed milk in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. (Alternatively, heat the cream and milk in the microwave.) Pour the cream over the chocolate and whisk until smooth and shiny. Whisk in the eggs and vanilla until smooth. Cover, and set aside at room temperature.
• Place the dough between 2 pieces of waxed or parchment paper and roll into a circle about 1/4-inch thick. Refrigerate for 15 minutes.
• Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. Peel off a piece of parchment from the dough, then gently flip dough into tart pan, peeling away the rest of parchment. Carefully press dough into the tart pan so that it sits evenly in the pan. Trim excess dough from the edges, if needed. Line the crust with wax paper or lightly sprayed parchment paper and fill with pie weights or baking beans (see photo).
• Place tart shell on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the paper and weights and continue to bake until the crust sets and looks a little dull (a sign it is cooked), about 5 minutes more. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
• Remove tart pan from oven and spread the dulce de leche evenly over the warm crust. Then top with the chocolate filling. Bake until the filling sets around edges but is still slightly wobbly in the center, about 25 to 30 minutes. Cool completely.
• Serve. For a final flourish, sprinkle lightly with gray salt just before serving, if desired.
• - Make dough and freeze for up to a month ahead.
• - Form, bake and freeze crust, tightly wrapped, for up to 1 week.
• - Assemble and refrigerate up to 2 days, tightly wrapped.
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DULCE DE LECHE

Steps:

• For the stovetop method: Remove the label from the can of sweetened condensed milk. Place 3 to 4 forks upside down on the bottom of a large 6- to 8-quart pot. Place the unopened can on top of the forks and cover with water by a few inches. (The forks help to prevent a vacuum between the bottom of the can and the pot.) Place the pot over high heat until it reaches a simmer, then lower the heat to medium-low or low to maintain a steady simmer for about 3 hours. Add more water to the pot if necessary to ensure that the can is submerged at all times. Let the can cool to room temperature in the water before removing. Open the can and scoop out the contents. The dulce de leche should be dark and caramelized.
• For the oven method: Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Place a shallow baking dish in a roasting pan. Pour the sweetened condensed milk into the baking dish and cover the dish with foil. Transfer the roasting pan to the oven and add enough hot water to reach halfway up the sides of the baking dish. Bake until the dulce de leche is dark and caramelized, 60 to 75 minutes, checking the water level occasionally and adding more if needed. Let cool, then whisk until smooth.
• Transfer the dulce de leche to an airtight container, put plastic wrap directly on the surface and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

DULCE DE LECHE CHEERIOS™ PARFAITS

Steps:

• In each of 4 parfait glasses, layer 1/4 cup of the bananas, one half container of the yogurt and 1/4 cup of the cereal; repeat layers. Top each parfait with 1/4 cup strawberries; serve immediately.

CHOCOLATE DULCE DE LECHE BARS

Steps:

• Make shortbread crust:
• Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Butter a shallow 9- to 9 1/2-inch square baking pan (1 to 1 1/2 inches deep). Line bottom and 2 sides with parchment paper, leaving an overhang. Butter parchment.
• Blend together butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a bowl with a fork. Sift in flour and blend with fork until a soft dough forms.
• Spread dough evenly in baking pan using an offset spatula or back of a spoon, then prick all over with fork.
• Bake until golden, 15 to 20 minutes, then cool completely in pan on a rack, about 30 minutes.
• Make chocolate dulce de leche:
• Bring cream and dulce de leche to a simmer in a small heavy saucepan, stirring with a wooden spoon until dulce de leche has dissolved.
• Whisk together yolks in a bowl, then slowly whisk in hot cream mixture. Return to pan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until pan is visible in tracks of spoon and mixture registers 170°F on an instant-read thermometer. Remove from heat and whisk in chocolate until melted.
• Make bars:
• Pour chocolate mixture over cooled shortbread and chill, uncovered, until cold and set, about 2 hours.
• Run a small knife around edges to loosen, then transfer to a cutting board using parchment. Cut with a hot clean knife (dip in hot water and wipe clean between cuts) into 24 bars. Chill until ready to serve.

DULCE DE LECHE

Steps:

• Pierce the top of the can with a bottle opener and remove paper from can.
• Cover top of can tightly with aluminum foil.
• Place in a sauce pan, submerge in water to 1" from the top.
• Boil over med-low heat for 4 hours.
• Open lid of can and place contents in a bowl.
• EXCELLENT for dipping apples, pears, crackers and for spreading of bread and great on ice cream!

HOW TO MAKE DULCE DE LECHE

Steps:

• Wash the nail and pound it into the top of can of sweetened condensed milk to make 2 small holes on opposite sides of the top. Remove nail.
• Place the can of condensed milk into a small saucepan and pour in water to reach high up the side of the can. Bring water to a boil; reduce heat to low. Simmer milk in the can for 3 to 4 hours. Milk will slowly turn light to medium brown and become thicker as it cooks. Add more water as it boils down.
• Remove lid from can and pour dulce de leche into a bowl. Whisk to break up any lumps and mix thicker caramel from the bottom into the rest of the syrup.

DULCE DE LECHE (LATIN AMERICAN CARAMEL SPREAD)

Steps:

• Add all the ingredients to a heavy-bottomed saucepan and stir well to dissolve the sugar completely.
• Set the saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to very low and simmer, stirring frequently, until thickened and caramelized, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
• Transfer to a clean glass jar and refrigerate. Will keep for 1-2 weeks.