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By Root 652 0

history. Arriving in the Caribbean with Christopher Columbus, the Key lime thrived in the United States up through the early twentieth century. Then, in 1926, a hurricane wiped out most of Florida’s crop, which was replaced with plantings of the larger, thicker-skinned Persian lime, considered sturdier and therefore easier to cultivate and transport. A few of the original trees survived in the Florida Keys, where the fruit acquired its American name and where, in the nineteenth century, the eponymous pie was invented.

Snickerdoodles

These sweet, spicy cookies are a classic example of how beautifully the flavor of cinnamon blooms in butter.

3 cups flour

2 tsp. cream of tartar

1 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. kosher salt

1¾ cups sugar

16 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature

5 tsp. ground cinnamon

1½ tsp. vanilla extract

2 eggs

Makes 48 cookies

1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt; set aside. Using a handheld mixer on medium speed, beat 1½ cups sugar and the butter together in a medium bowl until pale and fluffy, 2 minutes. Add 2 tsp. cinnamon and the vanilla; beat for 1 minute more.

2. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add reserved dry ingredients; mix on low speed until just combined. Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes.

3. Heat oven to 375°F. Combine remaining sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Remove dough from refrigerator and, using a 1-tbsp. measure, spoon out 48 portions, rolling each portion into a 1-inch ball as you go. Roll each ball in the cinnamon–sugar mixture to coat. Arrange dough balls 2 inches apart on 2 parchment paper–lined baking sheets. Bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Dulce de Leche Cake

Pastel de Cuatro Leches

The Spanish name for this dessert, popular in the Dominican Republic, is pastel de cuatro leches—“four-milks cake”—a nod to its four key components: heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and the milk-based caramel sauce dulce de leche. That last ingredient is, literally, the frosting on the cake and also what sets it apart from the more common pastel de tres leches.

2 tsp. unsalted butter

1 tbsp. plus 2 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1½ tsp. fine sea salt

6 eggs, at room temperature, separated

11/3 cups sugar

½ cup whole milk

1½ tbsp. dark rum

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk

1 12-oz. can evaporated milk

1 cup heavy cream

1 16-oz. jar dulce de leche (milk caramel)

Serves 8–10

1. Heat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with the butter and dust with 1 tbsp. of the flour. Invert the pan, tap out the excess flour, and set aside.

2. Sift together the remaining flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl and set aside. Put the egg whites into a large bowl and beat with a hand mixer on medium speed until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes. While the mixer is still running, add the sugar in a gradual stream and continue beating again to medium peaks. Add the egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Alternately add the reserved flour mixture and the whole milk in 3 parts, beating until smooth after each addition. Add the rum and vanilla and beat again briefly until smooth.

3. Pour the cake batter into the reserved baking pan and bake until golden brown, 25–30 minutes. Set the cake aside and let cool slightly for 30 minutes.

4. Whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream in a bowl. Using a knife, poke the cake with holes all over, penetrating to the bottom of the pan. Pour the milk mixture over the warm cake and set aside to cool completely.

5. Cover the cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until well chilled and the liquid is absorbed, at least 4 hours. Spread the dulce de leche across the top of the cake and serve.

Chocolate–Caramel Tart

In this tart—served at the Brooklyn, New York, restaurant Marlow & Sons and its sister restaurant, Diner (server Lindsay Debach is pictured)