Carlota de Cafe
Carlota de Cafe is a rich, creamy no-bake dessert made with layers of Maria cookies and a coffee-infused cream filling. It’s chilled to perfection and topped with a light dusting of cocoa and coffee for a delicious, irresistible treat.
Servings: 12
Calories: 438kcal
Ingredients
- 8 oz cream cheese room temperature
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk 14 oz
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾-1 cup strong brewed coffee completely cooled
- 3 ½ cups heavy whipping cream
- 2-3 packages Maria cookies or any digestive cookies
- ½ tablespoon cocoa powder for garnish
- 1 teaspoon instant coffee for garnish
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the room temperature cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon, salt and cooled brewed coffee. Beat the mixture with a mixer until smooth and creamy.
- Add the heavy whipping cream directly into the coffee cream mixture. Continue whipping until the mixture thickens and forms soft peaks. The cream should be fluffy but not too stiff. Don’t worry if it looks a bit thin at first. Start whipping and stick with it, it might feel like it’s never going to thicken, but give it a few minutes.
- In a 9x13 inch baking dish, spread a thin layer of the whipped coffee cream mixture on the bottom. Place a layer of Maria cookies on top, covering the entire surface. Add another layer of the coffee cream on top of the cookies. Repeat the process, alternating layers of cookies and coffee cream, until all the mixture is used, finishing with a layer of the coffee cream on top.
- Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or preferably overnight, to allow the cookies to soften and the flavors to meld.
- Before serving, mix the cocoa powder and instant coffee together in a small bowl. Lightly dust the top of the Carlota with this mixture using a fine sieve or sifter. Slice the Carlota into squares and serve chilled.
Video
Notes
- Use strong brewed coffee for the filling to get a more robust flavor. Decaf works too if you’re avoiding caffeine.
- Some people have been having a hard time with the cream mixture thickening so to avoid this, start with just half of the coffee in step 1 to mix into the cream cheese and condensed milk. Once the whipped cream has stiffened, gently fold in the rest of the coffee gradually, tasting as you go to ensure the mixture stays thick and doesn’t thin out too much. This way, you can control the consistency while still achieving the perfect coffee flavor!
- Chill the dessert overnight if possible. The extra time lets the cookies soften into a cake-like consistency.
- For an extra touch, garnish with grated chocolate or a sprinkle of cinnamon in addition to the cocoa powder and instant coffee.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 438kcal | Carbohydrates: 26g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Cholesterol: 109mg | Sodium: 250mg | Potassium: 241mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 22g | Vitamin A: 1363IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 164mg | Iron: 0.4mg
