Torta Chilena Recipe

Introduction

Torta Chilena is a delightful layered dessert from Chile, featuring crisp pastry rounds sandwiched with rich dulce de leche and topped with a luscious whipped cream frosting. Its delicate texture and sweet, creamy flavor make it perfect for special occasions or a memorable treat.

Ingredients

• 4 cups (480g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1 3/4 teaspoons table salt
• 14 tablespoons (198g) unsalted butter, cold; cut into 1/2″ cubes
• 3/4 cup (170g) milk, whole preferred; cold
• 2 large egg yolks
• Three 13.4-ounce cans (1,140g) dulce de leche, divided
• 1 cup (227g) heavy cream
• 1/4 cup (57g) crème fraîche
• 3 tablespoons (21g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• Nonpareils or sprinkles, for decorating

Instructions

1. Step 1: Weigh your flour or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.
2. Step 2: In a large bowl or stand mixer bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. Add cold butter cubes and work them into the flour with fingers, pastry blender, or mixer until the mixture resembles coarse sand, about 5-7 minutes by hand or 4-5 minutes on low speed.
3. Step 3: In a small bowl, whisk the cold milk and egg yolks together with a fork. Pour this into the flour mixture and mix gently until just combined, avoiding overmixing.
4. Step 4: Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface, divide into eight equal pieces (around 110g each), shape into rough balls, place on a baking sheet, cover tightly, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight.
5. Step 5: Preheat the oven to 350°F and prepare two baking sheets with parchment or light grease.
6. Step 6: Remove dough from the fridge. If too firm, let rest covered at room temperature for 10-15 minutes. Roll two dough pieces at a time into 9-inch rounds on a floured surface, place on baking sheets, allowing slight overlap.
7. Step 7: Dock each pastry round with a fork to reduce puffing.
8. Step 8: Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating pans halfway through, until light golden with some darker spots.
9. Step 9: Transfer the baked rounds to a wire rack to cool.
10. Step 10: Repeat rolling, docking, and baking with remaining dough, letting all rounds cool completely.
11. Step 11: To assemble, spread about 1 teaspoon dulce de leche on a serving plate and place one pastry layer on top, pressing gently to adhere.
12. Step 12: Spread 1/2 cup (140g) dulce de leche evenly over the pastry, leaving a 1/4″ border. Continue layering pastry and dulce de leche until all are used, finishing with dulce de leche on top. Handle layers carefully as they are delicate.
13. Step 13: Refrigerate the assembled cake uncovered; it can chill for up to 24 hours at this stage.
14. Step 14: For the topping, whip heavy cream, crème fraîche, and sifted confectioners’ sugar until stiff peaks form. Spread or pipe onto the cake’s top and sides as desired.
15. Step 15: Chill the cake uncovered for at least 24 hours if possible to allow flavors to meld, or serve immediately after adding the topping.
16. Step 16: Before serving, let the cake sit at room temperature, uncovered, for 1 hour. Decorate with nonpareils or sprinkles and slice with a serrated knife, wiping clean between cuts.

Tips & Variations

• Use cold ingredients and avoid overworking the dough to keep pastry layers tender and flaky.
• Substitute crème fraîche with sour cream for a slightly different tangy flavor in the topping.
• If dulce de leche is unavailable, caramel sauce can be used but it may be less thick.

Storage

Store leftover Torta Chilena covered in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. To enjoy best texture and flavor, bring it to room temperature for about an hour before serving. Leftovers can be sliced and gently reheated briefly if desired, though it’s typically served chilled or at room temperature.

How to Serve

Serve this delicious recipe with your favorite sides.

FAQs

Can I make the dough ahead of time?

Yes, the dough can be chilled overnight before rolling and baking. This resting time helps hydrate the flour and relax gluten, making the dough easier to handle.

What if the pastry cracks when assembling the cake?

Small cracks are normal because the pastry is delicate. Handle layers gently and press together carefully. If cracks appear, cover them with a thin layer of dulce de leche or whipped topping to help hold the cake together.

Torta Chilena Recipe

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★★★★★

4.5 from 123 reviews

• Author: Harry
• Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes plus chilling time
• Yield: 1 cake serving 8-10 people 1x

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Description

Torta Chilena is a traditional Chilean layered cake made with tender, buttery pastry rounds and rich dulce de leche filling. The cake is assembled by layering multiple baked pastry discs with creamy dulce de leche and topped with a whipped cream and crème fraîche frosting, decorated with colorful nonpareils. This elegant dessert is perfect for special occasions and requires baking delicate thin pastry layers and careful assembly for that characteristic melt-in-the-mouth texture and sweet, creamy flavor.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Pastry:

• 4 cups (480g) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1 3/4 teaspoons table salt
• 14 tablespoons (198g) unsalted butter, cold; cut into 1/2″ cubes
• 3/4 cup (170g) whole milk, cold
• 2 large egg yolks

Filling:

• Three 13.4-ounce cans (1,140g) dulce de leche, divided

Topping:

• 1 cup (227g) heavy cream
• 1/4 cup (57g) crème fraîche
• 3 tablespoons (21g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• Nonpareils or sprinkles, for decorating

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Instructions

1. Measure flour: Weigh 4 cups (480g) of flour or spoon into measuring cups and level off to ensure accurate measurement for dough consistency.
2. Prepare pastry dough: In a large bowl or mixer bowl, whisk together flour and salt. Add cold butter cubes and work the mixture using fingers, pastry blender, or mixer flat beater until sandy texture forms (5-7 minutes by hand or 4-5 minutes mixer low speed).
3. Add wet ingredients: In a separate bowl, whisk cold milk and egg yolks until combined. Pour into flour mixture and mix gently until just combined without dry flour; avoid overmixing to keep dough tender.
4. Divide and chill dough: Transfer dough onto floured surface, divide into eight ~110g balls. Place balls on baking sheet, cover tightly and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to overnight to rest the dough and hydrate flour.
5. Preheat oven and prep pans: Heat oven to 350°F (175°C) with racks set in upper and lower thirds. Line two baking sheets with parchment or lightly grease.
6. Roll out pastry rounds: Remove dough from fridge. If too firm, rest covered at room temperature 10-15 minutes. Roll each piece into 9-inch rounds on lightly floured surface, working two at a time on baking sheets, allowing slight overlap as dough shrinks upon baking.
7. Dock pastry: Use a fork to prick holes evenly across the pastry rounds to prevent puffing in oven.
8. Bake first batch: Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating sheets top to bottom and front to back halfway, until light golden with slightly darker spots. Remove and cool on wire racks.
9. Bake second batch: Roll out remaining four dough pieces, place on warm baking sheets, dock and bake similarly, then cool completely on racks.
10. Start assembly: Spread about 1 teaspoon of dulce de leche on serving plate. Place first pastry round on top, pressing gently to adhere.
11. Layer cake: Spread 1/2 cup (140g) dulce de leche thinly over pastry round, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Layer next pastry round on top. Repeat until all pastry and dulce de leche are used, ending with a dulce de leche layer. Handle layers carefully as pastry is delicate.
12. Chill assembled cake: Refrigerate uncovered for up to 24 hours to allow layers to set and flavors to meld before topping.
13. Prepare topping: Whip heavy cream, crème fraîche, and sifted confectioners’ sugar on medium-high speed for 3-4 minutes until stiff peaks form.
14. Apply topping: Spread or pipe whipped cream mixture evenly on top and sides of assembled cake as desired.
15. Final chill: Ideally refrigerate cake uncovered at least 24 hours to enhance flavor fusion. Cake can also be served immediately if preferred.
16. Serve: Let cake sit at room temperature uncovered for 1 hour before serving. Decorate with nonpareils or sprinkles. Slice with serrated knife, wiping blade clean between slices.
17. Storage: Store leftovers covered in refrigerator up to 1 week.

Notes

• Dough can be rested overnight to develop flavor and improve texture.
• Be gentle when layering to prevent cracking due to delicate thin pastry layers.
• Allowing the assembled cake to chill enhances melding of flavors and softens texture.
• If dough is too hard to roll, let it warm slightly at room temperature for easier handling.
• Use a serrated knife to slice to preserve layers and prevent crumbling.
• Nonpareils add festive decoration but can be omitted or substituted with other sprinkles.
• Ensure dulce de leche is at room temperature for easier spreading.

• Prep Time: 40 minutes
• Cook Time: 50 minutes
• Category: Dessert
• Method: Baking
• Cuisine: Chilean

Keywords: Torta Chilena, Chilean cake, layered dulce de leche cake, Latin American desserts, pastry cake, dulce de leche dessert