From Argentina with love: Dulce de leche

Published 7:58 am Saturday, March 4, 2017

For Josephine Caminos Oria of O’Hara, Pennsylvania, the creamy caramel, dulce de leche, is a link to her heritage and preserves the memories of her grandmother.

Her family moved from Argentina to Pittsburgh when she was 1, and her maternal grandparents, who visited often to help out, would do everything possible to keep the old country traditions alive.

That meant Maria Dora Germain, or Grandma Dorita as she was affectionately known, would make sure that her grandchildren were able to converse in Spanish fluently and would prepare every meal from scratch. She would teach them to bake desserts such as alfajores (sandwich cookies filled with dulce de leche), torta de nuez (nut cake served with dulce de leche), and her favorite — flan mixto (caramel custard served with whipped cream and dulce de leche).

“It was one of the first desserts she taught me to bake as a child and her way of passing on her Argentine roots,” writes Oria in a memoir/cookbook, “Dulce de Leche: Recipes, Stories & Sweet Traditions” (Burgess Lea Press; Feb. 7, 2017; $25), in honor of her grandmother. “You can take the girl out of Argentina, she’d say, but you can’t take Argentina out of the girl.”

Because Grandma Dorita could not find commercial versions of the creamy milk caramel in the local supermarkets, she would stay up late into the night, Oria said, stirring the milk-sugar mixture constantly for about two hours so that it would be ready to be served with toast for breakfast the following morning.

And that’s how Oria’s love affair began with dulce de leche, which is pronounced duel-say day lay-chay. When she got older and asked her grandmother to share the recipe, she was told in Spanish: “Josie, don’t even try it. You will drive yourself crazy trying.” Grandma Dorita didn’t want Oria, who had four boys under the age of 5, to be weighed down making the time-consuming spread.

Eventually and reluctantly, Grandma Dorita did share the recipe.

“It was a recipe, but not really,” said Oria. “She gave me the ingredients without any detail as to the measurements and gave me directions without the cooking times.”

Once Oria got the hang of it, she said, she became “obsessed making it.”

She expanded that obsession when she and her husband, Gaston, opened La Dorita, a commercial kitchen in Sharpsburg, to make larger batches of dulce de leche. Today La Dorita features the original flavor, a dark chocolate version and one spiked with vodka.

Oria, who also is the chief financial officer for the Monroeville, Pennsylvania-based Med Health Services, said she wanted to share the versatility of dulce de leche in her cookbook and spoke about how it is made in a phone interview.

Q: What are the key steps to keep in mind when making dulce de leche?

A: High-quality ingredients are key. You need to use fresh raw milk or high-quality organic milk. You also need time and patience as it needs to be constantly stirred. It is really a craft.

Q: How important is it to use raw milk?

A: Fresh raw milk has all the fats and enzymes to make a buoyant dulce de leche. When milk is pasteurized, it won’t render down to a nice consistency as it doesn’t have the fat. Also, it’s OK to use raw milk as it will be get pasteurized during the cooking process.

Q: Is it a must to transfer the dulce de leche to another bowl after it is cooked?

A: Because it cooks at such a high temperature, you want to cool it as soon as possible to avoid the crystallization of the sugars. If you don’t, the dulce de leche won’t have such a smooth consistency.

Q: There’s the classic dulce de leche. But what about the variations?

A: Instead of using sugar, you can make it with raw honey, which gives it layers of flavor. Or you can make a dark chocolate or coffee variety. There’s the burnt caramel dulce de leche that has a nutty burnt sugar flavor and a more in-depth flavor.

Q: How does the confectionary dulce de leche differ from the traditional one?

A: The confectionary kind is used to decorate cakes and between cake layers as it’s thicker in consistency and holds its shape. It won’t trickle down the side or spill out of a puff pastry. The traditional kind is used as more of a spread, like on toast. Or it can be used to mix into coffee or cereal.

Q: I see that you use dulce de leche in a lot of savory dishes, too. What does it best work with?

A: As a rule of thumb, I use it in any dish that calls for maple syrup, honey or brown sugar. So I would use it on pancakes and Brussels sprouts, and with bacon. If something needs to be a little sweeter, I would use it then.

Q: What do you have to say to those who think making dulce de leche is too time consuming?

A: Of course, I realize it. The book is for those who love to cook. I want to educate them about dulce de leche. That it is not just for gourmet cakes but can be used every day. It is a way of life.

Grandma knows best

Maria Dora Germain never let Josephine Caminos Oria write down a single recipe. Instead, she wanted her granddaughter to trust her instincts and have faith in herself. Here are Grandma Dorita’s common sense tips when making dulce de leche:

• Feel and taste your way when making it.

• Don’t get hung up on how long you need to stir the caramel or what temperature the milk should be. You’ll get to know the feel of the milk, and it will turn out as planned.

• Use a copper pan as it conducts heat evenly. It also reduces the scalding of milk at high temperatures.

• Use raw milk or fresh farm milk.

• Be patient and have a love for cooking, especially when something takes time.

• Don’t multitask when making dulce de leche. It requires your time and attention.

Traditional Dulce De Leche

Makes 6 cups

Be sure to stir the milk constantly soon after the sugar is added so that the milk won’t stick to the pot. Also, maintain the milk to a steady boil over medium-high heat so that it can cook down to a spreadable consistency. At the end of it all, it will be two hours well spent.

1 gallon pasteurized or raw whole cow’s milk

1 tsp baking soda

4 C granulated pure cane sugar

1 vanilla bean, split with seeds scraped into a small bowl

Combine milk and baking soda in a heavy copper or aluminum pot, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until milk is warm.

Gradually add sugar, stirring constantly to prevent milk from sticking to the pot, until sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes.

Add a tablespoon of warmed milk in a small bowl and stir in vanilla seeds until they dissolve. Then add vanilla mixture to milk in the pot, and stir. As the milk begins to boil, it will foam and rise in the pot. If it appears to overflow, lower the heat and continue to stir.

Once the milk settles down, maintain a steady boil over medium-high heat, and stir every few minutes to keep milk from sticking to the pot, for approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes more.

When dulce de leche is a deep golden color and coats the wooden spoon, test for doneness.

Place a spoonful on a cold plate. Let it cool for a minute and tilt the plate. If it doesn’t run, it is done. If it is still runny, continue to boil the mixture for 5 more minutes.

When dulce de leche is done, remove from the heat and transfer to a metal bowl. Then place it in an ice bath in an extra-large bowl. Stir the milk caramel for about 15 minutes to prevent overcooking or crystallizing.

When ice is melted, transfer bowl to a cooling rack and let cool for 1 hour.

If the cooled dulce de leche is lumpy, press the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into another bowl. Spoon the mixture into Mason jars, cover tightly and store in refrigerator for up to a month.

For THICKER DULCE DE LECHE

In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and 1 1/2 tablespoons whole milk until the cornstarch is fully dissolved.

In the top of a double boiler, gradually bring 2 cups of dulce de leche to a slow boil, then stir in cornstarch mixture.

Boil for 5 minutes, until the mixture begins to thicken.

Transfer to another bowl and let it cool completely. It will continue to thicken as it cools.

— Adapted from “Dulce de Leche” by Josephine Caminos Oria 
(Burgess Lea Press; Feb. 7, 2017; $25)