Mexican Chocolate/Dulce de Leche Sandwich Cookies

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 egg
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk

Instructions

To make Dulce de Leche:
1. Pour one can (400 gr/14 ounces) of sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk) into a glass pie plate or shallow baking dish. Stir in a few flecks of sea salt.
2. Set the pie plate within a larger pan, such as a roasting pan, and add hot water until it reaches halfway up the side of the pie plate.
3. Cover the pie plate snugly with aluminum foil and bake for 1 to 1¼ hours. (Check a few times during baking and add more water to the roasting pan as necessary).
4. Once the Dulce de Leche is nicely browned and caramelized, remove from the oven and let cool. Once cool, whisk until smooth.
To make the Cookies:
5. In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, cocoa powder, cinnamon, salt, and cayenne pepper. Beat until combined, scraping bowl occasionally. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in flour.
6. Divide dough in half; cover and chill 1 hour or until dough is easy to handle.
7. Shape each portion of dough into a 6-inch-long roll about 1-3/4 inches in diameter. Wrap rolls in plastic wrap or waxed paper and chill about 4 hours or until dough is firm enough to slice. (can be sped up in the freezer.)
8. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Cut rolls into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Place slices 1 inch apart on prepared cookie sheet.
9. Bake in the preheated oven for 12 to 14 minutes or until edges are firm. Cool on cookie sheet for 2 minutes. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; let cool.
10. Spread a rounded tablespoon of dulce de leche on the bottom flat side of each of half the cookies. Top with remaining cookies, flat sides down, pressing together lightly. Makes 24 sandwich cookies.

Notes