Torta Mil Hojas — Print Recipe

An impressive layered cake of paper-thin pastry sheets stacked with dulce de leche (manjar), topped with meringue or powdered sugar — Chile's celebration cake.

Ingredients

For pastry: 500g all-purpose flour, 200g butter, 3 egg yolks, 100ml pisco or brandy, pinch of salt
For filling: 1kg manjar (dulce de leche)
For topping: 3 egg whites, 200g sugar, or powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions

1 Make pastry: combine flour and salt, cut in butter, add egg yolks and pisco. Knead into a smooth dough. Divide into 10-12 portions.
2 Roll each portion paper-thin into circles. Prick with a fork.
3 Bake each layer at 200C for 5-7 min until lightly golden. Cool on racks.
4 Spread manjar generously between each cooled layer, stacking evenly.
5 Make meringue: beat egg whites, gradually add sugar until stiff peaks. Spread over the top and sides.
6 Toast meringue with a torch or under the broiler. Or simply dust with powdered sugar. Refrigerate 2 hours before serving.

Did You Know?

Torta mil hojas is Chile's most requested birthday cake, and bakeries sell them pre-assembled in every neighborhood — but grandmothers insist the homemade version is always superior.