Dominican Arepas are truly one of a kind. They’re not like the typical arepas from Venezuela or Colombia. In fact, Dominican Arepas go by different names. Some call it Arepa Dulce and others call it Torta. Regardless, of what it’s called Dominican Arepas are a sweet treat that goes perfect with a hot cup of coffee. It even makes for a delicious midnight snack!
The beauty with this dish is that you can make this dish as sweet as you like and some even put chunks of coconut for a sweet delight. I personally like to keep it simple. I mix all of the ingredients in a non-stick pot and then transfer into a baking dish. I bake for about 35 minutes until the top is nice and golden brown. Afterwards, I let it cool and then enjoy either as a snack or for breakfast.
Sounds simple enough, right? Well, that’s because there’s all there is to it! Keep in mind, that you can add your favorite flavors or keep it super simple depending on what you have ready in the house. Traditionally, raisins are added to this dish for a sweet surprise along coconut milk to give it some depth of flavor. Now if you’re a regular here, then you know raisins are a hit or miss with me. My grandmother would NEVER omit the raisins but I’m personally not the biggest fan of cooked raisins. I prefer them at room temperature while they’re still shriveled up and deliciously sweet. However, that’s not to say that you can’t add it to this dish!
Now there’s a few things to note when making this dish:
- This dish thickens very quickly as it cools so it’s important that you work twice as fast when switching pots
- The thicker you cook the arepa on the stove, the thicker the torta is going to be after you bake it
- Don’t forget to butter the sides of your baking dish when making Arepa de Maiz | Torta Dominicana
- Feel free to bake the torta is the same pot that you cooked it in! This is the super old school way of doing it. Just make sure you’re working with a pot that can handle this sort of heat
- Feel free to use whatever types of milk that you want. You can use whole milk, skim milk, evaporated milk, coconut milk, and more. You can even mix different types of milk as well.
- The beauty of this dish is that you can make it as sweet as you like. You can also use sweet condensed milk to sweeten it as well.
- Use a whisk and continuously mix so that clumps don’t form when making your Arepa Dulce | Dominican Torta
- Bake this dish uncovered at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until the top begins to brown ever so slightly
For a step-by-step tutorial on How to Make Dominican Style Arepa Dulce de Maiz | Torta Dominicana visit my YouTube Channel: Chef Zee Cooks
And now for the recipe!
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cup Fine Cornmeal
- 3 cups Evaporated Milk
- 1 ½ cup Coconut Milk
- 1 ¼ cup Sugar or to taste
- ⅛ tsp Salt
- 3 Cinnamon Sticks
- 2 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 ½ tbs Unsalted Butter
- 1 ½ tbs Raisins*optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
- Butter your baking dish and set aside. Feel free to use a 9inch round dish or a 9x13" rectangular, or 8x8" square dish
- With the heat OFF-- In a non-stick pot, combine all of your dry ingredients-- fine cormeal, sugar, and salt. Whisk together.
- Now is add your wet ingredients-- evaporated milk, coconut milk, vanilla extract, cinnamon sticks, and butter. Whisk together until well combined.
- Turn flame to medium-low and continuously whisk until arepa mixtures begins to thicken-- about 5-10mins
- Once arepa mixture begins to thicken, remove cinnamon sticks and transfer arepa mixture into baking dish. Be sure to move quickly as mixture will continue to thicken on its own
- Bake arepa UNCOVERED for 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until the very top of the arepa begins to brown even so slightly
- Once cooked, remove from oven and let cool before serving