Dulce de Leche Recipe

By
Colleen Graham
Photo of Colleen Graham
Colleen Graham
Freelance writer and cocktail book author Colleen Graham is a seasoned mixologist who loves sharing her knowledge of spirits and passion for preparing drinks.
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Updated on 04/14/23
Prep: 3 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Total: 3 mins

This dulce de leche recipe is Bacardi Rum's recreation of a cocktail found in "Guys and Dolls." It was created for the 2009 revival of the popular Broadway musical. If you like thick chocolate martini style of drinks it's rather pleasant, though it's not to everyone's liking.

This drink can easily be mistaken for a "milkshake," primarily due to the sweet chocolate liqueur and the sweetened condensed milk (rarely seen in mixed drinks). It relates to one of the musical's most well-known scenes in which the "prudish" Sarah Brown gets a "bit" tipsy on the drink. Sky Masterson leads to believe that it is simply "sweet milk" and that Bacardi is a "preservative."

Ingredients

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, pour the rum, chocolate liqueur, and sweetened condensed milk.

  3. Shake well.

  4. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

  5. Garnish with a pinch of cinnamon and chocolate shavings on top.

  6. Serve and enjoy!

    Tips

    • If sweetened condensed milk is too rich for your taste, use one of the more common dairy cocktail ingredients as a substitute. Milk or cream are good choices, or you can split the difference and use half and half.
    • Since Bacardi created this recipe, it is the recommended brand. Any rum will do. Typically, you'll want to stick with a light (or white) rum.
    • A chilled cocktail glass will make this drink more enjoyable. If you don't have one pre-chilled, place a couple of ice cubes in the glass while you shake up the drink. Discard it before straining.

    Recipe Variation

    Is there an original dulce de leche cocktail or was it simply the playwrights' creative license? This question has a bit of a mystery behind it and it was revived along with the musical. Bartending guides from the 1950s make no mention of it. However, Eric Felton, author of the 2007 book "How's Your Drink?" (an in-depth look at the history of some iconic cocktails), did some digging into it for The Wall Street Journal.

    Felton was able to find a similar cocktail called the Doncellita (Spanish for "little lady" or "maiden"—a rough translation). It was popular in 1950's Havana, which is simply 2 ounces of crème de cacao topped with 1/2 ounce of heavy cream then adorned with a cherry. There's no shaking or mixing, but you will need to pour the cream over the chocolate liqueur using a bar spoon to ensure it floats.

    How Strong Is a Dulce de Leche?

    As Sarah Brown quickly discovered, the dulce de leche is not a weak drink. When made with the recommended spirits, it shakes up to about 19 percent ABV (38 proof). While that's normal for martini-style drinks, the sweet "milkshake" taste can trick you into drinking one too many.