There is nothing better than to cook for your loved ones. I personally love doing this. For example, I love when my husband or someone from my family asks me to cook something special for them. 
 

Sweet tamales made their great debut on my mom's birthday. I surprised her with them. She had eaten tamales before, but not this special and sweet version. If you want to try something new and stand out for your cooking skills I recommend you to try this recipe! 
 

• 1 cup of lard (you will use this for several tasks) 
• 2 and 1/2 cups of flour dough 
• 1 and 1/2 of yellow corn flour
• 1/4 cup of sugar
• 1 tablespoon of cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons of salt 
• 1 and 1/2 cups of water
• 1 can (14 oz.) of condensed milk
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla
• 1 cup of raisins
• 1/2 a cup of chopped nuts

• Start by gathering tons of corn cob leaves. Get rid of all the broken ones and soak the good ones in warm water for about 1 hour. You need them to be soft to fold them easily. 
• Now whisk 2/3 of the lard in a cup until it's creamy. Add the flour, the corn flour, the cinnamon, sugar, and salt. 
• Now you need to alternate to add the condensed milk, the water, and the remaining lard (make sure you melt it first) to your dough. Mix well until it's even. 
• You need to have a dough with the consistency of a cake batter. Once you have that you can add the raisins, the vanilla, and the nuts. 
• With a wooden spoon take one bit of your dough (about the size of 1/4 of a cup) and place it in the center of the corn cob leaf. 
• Fold the leaf to secure the dough inside. Fold all of the 4 sides in. 
• You will cook them using a steamer inside a pot. You only need to add a bit of water and make sure you close your pot with a lid. Put a humid piece of cloth (make sure it's clean) on top of your tamales. 
• Cook them with a very low fire to preserve the steam. Let them cook for about 2 hours. 

Author: Jackeline Colucci

Read the original Spanish version here.