TWD- Dulce de Leche Duos (Caramel Cookies!)

I love the look of sandwiched cookies- the dulce peeking out is smooth and pretty and hints of extra goodness. I was actually super surprised by this recipe. The dough is basically normal chocolate chip cookie dough with added dulce de leche. Sandwich some more between little, soft cookies and you have a fancy named caramel cookie. These were a big hit at our house and are all gone already (although my tall man said they should have been a bit crispier- but I don't trust his opinion on that and he doesn't mine. I think we'll always disagree on crunchy or chewy cookies!). My only complaint is that one can of Eagle brand milk didn't make enough to go into the cookies and on top. It wasn't all bad, though, because I scooped and froze half the dough for another time. That's the kind of freezer cooking I excel at! With about two more minutes of effort today we'll have some more of these soft, delicious cookies again later. Yay!

I'm including my version of the recipe since I made a few changes. I added more flour (mine was way too batter-y to even scoop), more salt, and vanilla. See the real recipe here and the rest of the TWD group's renditions, too. It'll have you craving cookies I guarantee! And don't miss these awesome tips for making your own Dulce de Leche.

Slow Cooker Dulce de Leche
1 Can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk

Remove label from the can and place in a slow cooker. Fill slow cooker with water, two inches over the can, and cook on low for 8 hours. Remove carefully and enjoy!

*Note- I made two cans and I think they turned out a little dark, although everyone loved the taste. It wasn't quite as spreadable as other pictures looked so let me know what you think! And do you think it looks totally unappetizing? My brother was appalled!

Dulce de Leche Duos
adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking

1 cup (8 oz) butter, softened
3/4 cup dulce de leche + more to sandwich the cookies
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350. Prepare baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Beat the butter at medium speed in a stand mixer until soft. Add 3/4 cup dulce de leche and both sugars and beat until light and fluffy, about 2 or 3 minutes. Add the eggs and beat for 1 minutes. Mix in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they disappear into the batter.

Spoon or scoop teaspoon-fuls of dough onto the baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between them and bake for 10 minutes. The cookies should be honey brown with a light sugar crust, but they will still be soft. Let cool for a minute and then transfer the cookies to a rack to cool. Repeat with the remaining dough, making sure you cool the baking sheets before spooning dough onto them (or scoop the dough onto the sheet and refridgerate while the other pans bake.

Spread a little dulce on the flat side of half the cookies to make sandwiches. Enjoy!