Halva-Caramel Alfajores (Caramel Filled Sandwich Cookies)

Total Time Prep: 25 min. + chilling. Bake: 10 min./batch + cooling
Yield 3 dozen
Contest Winner
Test Kitchen Approved
A modern twist on a Latin American classic, my delicate butter cookies have an irresistible halvah-caramel center. —Andrea Potischman, Menlo Park, California

Ingredients

  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons crumbled marble halva
  • 2 large egg yolks, room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • Dash sea salt
  • 6 tablespoons caramel sauce (such as Mrs. Richardson's)
  • Confectioners' sugar

Directions

  1. In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar and halvah until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into creamed mixture. Divide dough in half. Shape each into a disk; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate 2 hours or until firm enough to roll.
  2. Preheat oven to 350°. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion of dough to 1/4-in. thickness. Cut with a floured 1-1/2-in. circle-shaped cookie cutter. Place 1 in. apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until edges begin to brown, 7-8 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool completely.
  3. Once cool, spread 1/2 teaspoon caramel sauce on bottoms of half of the cookies; cover with remaining cookies. Refrigerate until serving. Dust with confectioners sugar.

Nutrition Facts

1 sandwich cookie: 85 calories, 4g fat (2g saturated fat), 20mg cholesterol, 41mg sodium, 12g carbohydrate (6g sugars, 0 fiber), 1g protein.

A modern twist on a Latin American classic, my delicate butter cookies have an irresistible halvah-caramel center. —Andrea Potischman, Menlo Park, California
Recipe Creator

© 2025 RDA Enthusiast Brands, LLC