Name: Chocotorta
Prep time: 25 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 10 servings
Cuisine: Argentina
Ingredients: 400 g thin chocolate cookies (such as Chocolinas or a similar wafer); 300 ml strong brewed coffee, cooled, or coffee-flavored milk; 500 g dulce de leche; 500 g cream cheese, softened; chocolate shavings, optional, to finish

Chocotorta has an unusually traceable history for a national favorite: it was invented in the 1980s as a recipe designed to sell a specific brand of thin chocolate cookie, and it worked well enough to become one of Argentina's most-made desserts.

The dip, not soak, rule for the cookies is the one technical point that matters. A second or two in the coffee is enough; any longer and the cookies fall apart before they even make it into the dish.

Part of our 20 best Argentine recipes list.

method

Beat the dulce de leche and cream cheese together until completely smooth and well combined.

Pour the cooled coffee into a shallow dish. Dip each cookie briefly, just a second or two per side, so it absorbs some liquid without falling apart; do not soak them.

Arrange a layer of dipped cookies in the bottom of a baking dish, breaking some to fill gaps.

Spread a layer of the dulce de leche and cream cheese mixture over the cookies.

Repeat the layers, cookies then filling, until you run out, finishing with a layer of the filling on top.

Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight, until the cookies have softened throughout to a cake-like texture.

Finish with chocolate shavings if using, and serve cold, cut into squares.

chef's tips

The cookies need a quick dip, not a soak. Held in the coffee too long, they turn to mush and the layers lose their structure.
This dessert is a relatively modern invention, created in the 1980s as a recipe to help sell a particular brand of chocolate cookie, and it has since become one of the country's most-made desserts.
Give it the full chilling time. A few hours is the minimum; overnight lets the cookies soften completely and the whole thing taste like one cohesive cake rather than layered parts.
Cream cheese and dulce de leche whipped together, not dulce de leche alone, is the actual filling here, and it is worth beating them together thoroughly for a smooth result.