I think I was sold the first time I heard someone describe dulce de leche, thick creamy caramel like, what could be better.
From what I have been able to find out, dulce de leche translates to Milk Sweets/Candy, and it is mainly just made of Milk and Sugar.
I first heard out about it after I found out that I was Lactose intolerant, and all the recipes I found for it was made with condense milk, but after days of searching, I found a website explaining how to make it from scratch, so that is what I did and it was heavenly, like nothing I have ever tasted before.
I was very curious after making it the first time, is it as good as when you make it from condense milk? So I decided to make two versions, one from scratch and one with a can of condense milk. I only had a small taste, to make out the difference as it would have given me a tummy ace to eat any, but I found that I actually liked the one I had made from scratch better. The conformation then came a day after when I went to the fridge and saw that most of the one I made from scratch was almost eaten and the other one had hardly been touched, and asking my boyfriend (who can have milk) he confessed that he had been eating it and that he liked the one from scratch best.
The thing is though, that it is a bit of an time consuming thing to make from scratch, but after you have made it a few times, it becomes so easy that you are finding yourself doing other things at the same time, so don't be discouraged and do try it.
There are two thicknesses you can make you dulce de leche in, as a sauce that you can use on ice cream, drizzle on cakes, and so on, or as a soft caramel thickness that you can scoop out with a spoon and use in all sorts of baked goods (or eat raw ;-).
Stir it all together in a pot, and letting it simmer on low-medium heat for 1 hour 15-30 minutes, stirring occasionally every 5 minutes) with a wooden spoon not letting it burn.
When it starts coating the spoon with a thin layer that stays on the spoon, that means it is in the final stages of cooking, and this is where the difference in thickness comes in.
If you want it as a dulce de leche sauce you want to give it a good stir for a minute and then transferee it to a container to cool.
If you want it as a soft caramel consistency, you want to switch the spoon for a whisk and whisk for the next 5 minutes making sure it doesn't burn, and when you start getting lines in the dulce de leche allowing you to see the bottom of the pan, that means that it is done, and you can transferee to baked goods or a container to cool.
When it starts coating the spoon with a thin layer that stays on the spoon, that means it is in the final stages of cooking, and this is where the difference in thickness comes in.
If you want it as a dulce de leche sauce you want to give it a good stir for a minute and then transferee it to a container to cool.
If you want it as a soft caramel consistency, you want to switch the spoon for a whisk and whisk for the next 5 minutes making sure it doesn't burn, and when you start getting lines in the dulce de leche allowing you to see the bottom of the pan, that means that it is done, and you can transferee to baked goods or a container to cool.
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Thanks! I've been trying (unsuccessfully till now) to find a recipe for dulce de leche from scratch. And I wasn't even actually looking for one just now - I found yours while searching to find out how much lactose is in the finished product (because I love the stuff, but recently discovered I'm lactose intolerant).
ReplyDeleteI'm going to make it tomorrow!
I am so glad you found my blog then :-) how did it turn out?
DeleteBrilliant, my daughter is lactose, nut, and a whole list of other intolerances do the recipe here is perfect.
ReplyDeleteThank you :-)
DeleteI was very excited when i discovered this recipe, however substituted cows milk for goats milk, as my partner is allergic to cows milk not lactose.... Two things happened, firstly the goats milk taste was overpowering, and the color remained white... Any tips/suggestions?
ReplyDeleteI don't unfortunatly :-( I have never tried making it with soy milk, as I not good with soy milk, but if you try that I hope you will leave a comment on how it turned out.
Deletejust made this with soya milk for a bannoffee pie recipe. lovely. is so good to find a dairy free substitute for caramel that can be used in tray bakes and pies etc. I think it would also work good with rice milk. I seem to have problem with milk protein as well as lactose so the lactose free milk is not the best for me. thank you for the recipe :-) Kim
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it :-)
DeleteHey am just about to make this recipe with Soya Milk instead, to use in a no bake banoffee pie recipe. Thanks so much and great blog :)
ReplyDeleteIbbs x x
http://lalangostaymi.blogspot.com
How did it turn out?
DeleteOh no! I just tried this w coconut milk bc my daughter cannot do dairy of any kind and it did not work out at all. :( I followed every step, but after about 50 min to an hour, I think all the water content must have completely evaporated bc the sugar started to puff up and I took it off the burner. It cooled to a powdery, sugary consistency. So, I basically just made coconut flavored sugar! It never browned or burned at all and was on pretty low the whole time, so I don't think I had the heat on too high. What did I do wrong? I'm dying to get this to work. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteWhat kind of coconut milk are u using? You could try to mix the canned coconut milk with the drinking coconut milk as it tends to be too waterish and the canned one has a lot of fat so if you do a 50-50 mix this might work for u.
DeleteOr you could buy the frozen coconut milk sold in Asian or Indian Shops, i have used it to make condensed milk and it worked fine for me.
Just make sure to stir it constantly as the coconut milk might curdle with the heat.
Wow! I thought I would never be able to enjoy banoffee again since becoming lactose intolerant! This is great thanks x
ReplyDeleteGlad you like it :-)
DeleteFantastic, thank you. I won't be doing this often but my husband who is lactose intolerant can have millionaires shortbread for the first time in 3 or 4 years! This is one of the only things I haven't until today been able to make lactose/dairy free.
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it. How did the millionaire shortbread turn out?
DeleteI ran into this blog looking for lactose-free banoffee pie. I really love this dulce the leche. With lactose-free milk it's pretty easy to make. Any idea how long you can keep it in the fridge?
ReplyDeleteMy first try did not survive it over the weekend, but I am definately going to make it again!
Glad you liked it :-) I would assume about a week with all the sugar and boiling, but could be longer if unopened and in a sterilized bottle.
DeleteHelp. I'm an hour into the simmer and it's still looking very pale and watery. Should I turn up the heat? Thanks
ReplyDeleteDid it turn out okay in the end?
DeleteHome made twix bars on the way. Thank you :0)
ReplyDeleteYour welcome :-) how did the homemade twix bars turn out?
DeleteDoes it matter what kind of sugar you use? I would like to use cane sugar, is that alright?
ReplyDeleteI think it is fine with any sugar, I know it is fine with cane sugar anyway, because I have tried that as well ;-) please tell me how you get on :-)
DeleteI didnt read all the posts, and don't know if anyone succeeded in doing the recipe with dairy free milk, but I did!!! Hourrayyyyyyy! I used rice milk and coconut sugar and it turned out to be just great! Thank you for the recipe!
ReplyDeleteThis looks very good, thank you. Since having to go dairy free its the caramel I miss most. Will be trying it out very soon.
ReplyDeleteSuperb work, for me its some thing new and delicious. As, I am lactose intolerant and lactose free milk does't taste good. Trying dulced e leche is best option for me. Thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteI've been searching for weeks for a recipe to make some for my mom, sister and Grams! I'll be making it tomorrow for their Xmas gifts. I'll be making regular for my dad.
ReplyDeleteHi! Is there any chance you have imperial measurements available, and can you make this ahead of time (the soft version, not the sauce version)?
ReplyDelete