Pasta Frola is a typical Argentine cake. Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

* 60 g corn starch (1)

* 240 g flour

* 1 teaspoon baking powder

* 160 g sugar

* 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

* 2 eggs

* 150 g butter

* 500 g quince jam

* 1 grated lemon rind


Decoration:


* 1 tablespoon apricot or peach jam

* 3 tablespoons water

* Grated coconut

* Some dulce de leche (2)



Instructions:

1) Mix together butter and sugar in a large bowl. Add grated lemon rind, vanilla essence, eggs and mix. 

2) Finally, add the flour sifted with the baking powder and corn starch.

3) Knead all ingredients until combined (it's not necessary to knead a lot). Let the dough rest at least for 30 minutes.

4) To prepare the filling, cut the quince jam in little pieces and mix with 3 tablespoon water in a pot. Cook over low heat until well combined. 

5) Preheat the oven to 180 º C.  Take 3/4 of the dough and distribute it in a greased baking tin. Fill it with the quince jam. With the 1/4 dough, cut into strips to form a railing. 

6) Bake for 15 minutes to 180º C. Then bake another 15 minutes at 160º c.

7)Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 10 minutes, remove from the baking tin and cool completely.

8) Decoration: Mix the peach jam with 1 tablespoon water and 1 tablespoon sugar in a pot. Cook over low heat until well combined. Distribute the preparation over the cake. 

9) Spread the dulce the leche on the cake borders and sprinkle with grated coconut. 

10) Preserve in the refrigerator.


(1) If you don't get corn starch, replace with flour

(2) Dulce de leche is a typical Argentine sweet. If you don't get it, replace with jam

Didn't know that you have that too in Argentina! I thought we have it in common only with Italy. In Egypt we reverse the "r" and "l" letters and say Pasta Flora.