Alfajor
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 Two alfajores ("black" and "white" chocolate) |
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| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | Medina-Sidonia Alfajor, and Alfajor of Murcia: Spain Modern style: Argentina |
| Dish details | |
| Course served | Sweet |
| Serving temperature | Cold |
| Main ingredient(s) | Biscuit, Dulce de leche, Chocolate |
An alfajor (Spanish pronunciation: [alfaˈxor], plural alfajores) is a traditional confection that is found in some regions of Spain and in countries of Latin America including South America, Central America and Mexico. Its basic form consists of two round sweet biscuits joined together with dulce de leche or jam and covered with powdered sugar. In most alfajores there are two layers of cake, and a filling in between.
In South America alfajor is found most notably in Uruguay, Chile, Argentina and Perú. Though the food has been popular in Argentina and Uruguay since the mid 19th century, it has its roots in the Middle East. The name alfajor is derived from Arabic الفاخر, [alfaxer], which means "fancy" or "great" sweets. The archetypal alfajor entered Iberia during the period of al-Andalus.
[edit] Variations
Another popular feature of the alfajor, although not always present, is a coating of black or white chocolate (many alfajores are sold in "black" and "white" flavours). There's also one variation, called "Alfajor de nieve", that instead of having a white or black chocolate coating, it has a "snow" coating. The "snow coating" consists of a mixture of egg whites and sugar. Peruvian alfajores are usually coated in powdered sugar, as seen in the picture, and are filled with manjar blanco. Most alfajores come packaged in aluminium foil, In Mexico they are made with just coconut, and are normally a tri-color coconut confection, in Nicaragua, they follow more in the lines of the Canary island type of alfajores and are made with molasses and different type of grains including corn, and cacao similarly to most chocolate bars, though hand-made are just as accessible and generally packaged in plastic wrap or wax paper.
Other varieties of alfajor include different elements in the preparation of the biscuits, such as peanuts; they also vary the filling and coating and even add a third biscuit (alfajor triple).
In the province of Cádiz, Spain, there is a completely different confection also called alfajor that is made of flour, honey, almonds and several spices, such as cinnamon. It is most commonly sold around Christmas.
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Wikibooks Cookbook has a recipe/module on |
[edit] External links
- Alfajores TRADICIONALES CORDOBESES
- Alfajores de Argentina (Spanish) (English)
- El Blog De Los Alfajores
- Alfajores Balcarce (Spanish) (English)
- Alfajores Guaymallen
- Alfajores HAVANNA
- Alfajores Jorgito
- Alfajores Merengo (Santafesino Type) (Spanish) (English)
- Alfajores Estancia El Rosario (Cordobes Type) (Spanish) (English)
- Alfajores Portezuelo (Spanish) (English)
- Alfajor Ibopé made entirelly from Carob tree fruit (Spanish)
[edit] Gallery
 Murcian Alfajores. |
 Craft alfajores made with cornstarch and dulce de leche. |
 Havanna, one of the most important and traditional stores and brand of alfajores. |
