Everyone knows and loves classic sweet tarts like apple, blueberry, or even lemon, but hidden among Spanish desserts is one of the best: dulce de leche tart.
This recipe arose thanks to the culinary exchange between Spain and South America, and today you can find its various versions throughout the country.
In this article, we’ll show you how to make it in the comfort of your own home, with the best tips for storing, serving, and customizing ingredients to ensure you enjoy it to the fullest.
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Pssst…!!?? You can’t get enough of Spanish dessert recipes? Have a look at my other posts:
- Tres Leches Cake with Dulce de Leche
Background of the Dish
Dulce de leche tart doesn’t have a documented history, but it emerged as a fusion of classic Southern European tarts and one of South America’s most beloved ingredients: dulce de leche.
Today, it shares the spotlight with other traditional Spanish sweets, including those that also benefited from this combination, such as dulce de leche flan and dulce de leche crepes.
The best part is that you can customize the dulce de leche tart recipe to your liking in the comfort of your own home, playing with its ingredients and toppings, as we’ll see below.
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Things You’ll Need for Dulce de Leche Tart
To prepare the dulce de leche tart you will need cold butter, flour, egg, sugar, vanilla extract, heavy cream, and dulce de leche as the main ingredients.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (190g) All-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (115g) Cold unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup (50g) White sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 pinch Salt
- 1 can (400g) Dulce de leche
- 1/2 cup (120ml) Heavy cream
How to Make Dulce de Leche Tart – Step by Step Guide
- For the first step of the dulce de leche tart recipe, preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). Also, sift the flour.
- Now, take a large bowl and combine the flour, cold butter (cut into cubes), sugar, egg, vanilla extract, and salt.
- After that, mix with your hands until you have a smooth dough. Avoid overworking it, as this could affect the final result.
- Next, lightly flour a clean surface and roll out the dough with a rolling pin until it’s large enough to fit a 23 cm (9-inch) tart pan.
- For the next step, carefully place the dough in the pan and press it firmly against the bottom and sides. Trim off any excess dough and prick the base several times with a fork; this will help prevent air bubbles from forming and the dough from rising.
- To continue, bake the tart base for 20 to 25 minutes, or until it’s lightly golden brown. Remove it from the oven and let it cool completely.
- Next, grab a medium bowl and combine the dulce de leche, heavy cream, and vanilla extract. Beat until you have a smooth and creamy filling.
- Now, pour the dulce de leche mixture over the cooled tart crust and spread it evenly with a spatula. You can tap it a couple of times on the counter to ensure it’s evenly distributed.
- Before serving, refrigerate the dulce de leche tart for at least an hour, as this will allow the filling to firm up slightly and chill.
- To finish this delicious recipe, you can now serve the chilled dulce de leche tart. If desired, you can decorate it with whipped cream.
Substitution of Ingredients
Dulce de leche tart is undoubtedly one of our favorites because it’s super easy to make, and also because you can easily modify the ingredients.
For example, it’s super easy to make gluten-free: in most cases, dulce de leche is already gluten-free (check the labels), and with gluten-free flour, the tart will still be just as delicious.
If you don’t have dulce de leche to make this easy dulce de leche tart or can’t find it at the store, you can make your own using sweetened condensed milk.
Simply cook the condensed milk slowly until it thickens and develops the rich, caramel-like flavor and color of dulce de leche.
Ready to try more authentic Spanish desserts?
Then explore our recipes for pestiños, Spanish sugar cookies, and fartons for your next dessert or afternoon tea.
Tips on Serving Dulce de Leche Tart
This dulce de leche tart stands out among easy Spanish desserts because you can adapt the serving style to suit the occasion or the season.
During winter and autumn, you can top this tart with chopped and toasted nuts for extra texture, or make a berry jam and drizzle it on top.
For the summer months, a common combination in South America is to slice thin slices of canned peaches in syrup, as they add freshness to the dulce de leche cream.
Aside from that, homemade dulce de leche tart is fantastic as is, so you can serve it as a dessert or as a sweet snack, along with drinks like tea, coffee, or café con leche to balance the sweetness.
We also have a collection of Spanish tart-like desserts like tarta de chocolate, tarta de limon, or tarta de Santiago.
How to Store Dulce de Leche Tart
Once you’ve finished making the caramel dulce de leche tart, you can enjoy it the same day or store it for later.
Place the creamy dulce de leche tart in an airtight container and cover the top with plastic wrap to prevent a thick crust from forming.
Then, you can store the Spanish caramel tart for up to 4 days in the refrigerator, or up to a month in the freezer, and serve it whenever you like.
If you choose to freeze the tart, let it thaw overnight in the refrigerator before serving.
Did you know there’s a wide variety of Spanish desserts you can make and store?
Some of them include the popular tarta san Marcos, the traditional Spanish apple cake and the lovely dulce de leche layer cake.
Recipe Card: Dulce de Leche Tart
Dulce de Leche Tart Recipe
Everyone knows and loves classic sweet tarts like apple, blueberry, or even lemon, but hidden among Spanish desserts is one of the best: dulce de leche tart.
This recipe arose thanks to the culinary exchange between Spain and South America, and today you can find its various versions throughout the country.
In this article, we'll show you how to make it in the comfort of your own home, with the best tips for storing, serving, and customizing ingredients to ensure you enjoy it to the fullest.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (190g) All-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (115g) Cold unsalted butter, cubed
- 1/4 cup (50g) White sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 pinch Salt
- 1 can (400g) Dulce de leche
- 1/2 cup (120ml) Heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Sift the flour.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, cold butter (cut into cubes), sugar, egg, vanilla extract, and salt.
- Mix with your hands or a pastry cutter until you have a smooth dough. Avoid overworking it, as this could affect the final result.
- Lightly flour a clean surface and roll out the dough to fit a 23 cm (9-inch) tart tin.
- Carefully place the dough in the tin and press it firmly into the bottom and up the sides. Trim off any excess dough and prick the base several times with a fork; this will prevent air bubbles from forming and the dough from rising.
- Bake the tart base for 20-25 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Remove from the oven and let it cool completely.
- In a medium bowl, combine the dulce de leche, heavy cream, and vanilla extract. Beat until you have a smooth and creamy filling.
- Pour the dulce de leche mixture over the cooled tart crust and spread it evenly with a spatula.
- Refrigerate the dulce de leche tart for at least one hour, or until the filling is slightly firm and chilled.
- Serve the chilled dulce de leche tart. If desired, you can decorate it with whipped cream.
Notes
If you're serving this Spanish dulce de leche tart on a hot summer day, you can use vanilla or chocolate ice cream as a topping.
In most cases, dulce de leche is gluten-free, so you can make this gluten-free tart simply by using suitable ingredients; no other changes or substitutions are necessary.
The chilling time is key for the dulce de leche tart to retain its firmness and consistency, although you can speed it up by placing it in the freezer.
Nutrition Information
Yield
8Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 387Total Fat 20gSaturated Fat 12gUnsaturated Fat 8gCholesterol 75mgSodium 90mgCarbohydrates 46gFiber 1gSugar 10gProtein 6g
All information presented and written are intended for informational purposes only. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for, nor does it replace, professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have any concerns or questions about your health, you should always consult with a physician or other health-care professional. The writers and publishers of visitsouthernspain.com are not nutritionists or registered dietitians. Statements within this site have not been evaluated or approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Hola, I’m Paulina! Together with my team, we are passionate about Southern Spain. Here we share all you need to know for great times in Southern Spain with the best places to visit, stay and, of course, the best food to eat.
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