Recipe
🍰 DESSERT
Habichuelas con Dulce
A sweet, creamy pudding of blended red beans, coconut, and sweet potato, a uniquely Dominican Lenten dessert.
Dominican · easy · serves 8
prep 20 min · cook 50 min
~475 cal · 11g protein · 72g carbs · 18g fat · 7g fiber · 44g sugars · 15g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
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Habichuelas con dulce, sweet cream of beans, is a dessert found almost nowhere else on earth, and Dominicans are rightly proud of it. It turns the humble red bean into a sweet, spiced, coconut-rich pudding, most associated with Lent and Holy Week.
The beans are cooked soft, then blended and strained into a smooth base and cooked down with , evaporated milk, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, and often chunks of sweet potato (batata). Raisins and a scatter of small milk cookies (galletas) finish it.
Made in huge pots to share with family and neighbours, it is eaten warm or chilled, thick and comforting. To a first-timer the idea of sweet beans sounds strange; one spoonful usually settles the matter.
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Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian and egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 8
3 cups cooked red kidney beans
2 cups
1 cup evaporated milk
2 cups sweet potato (batata), cubed
1 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cinnamon sticks
4 whole cloves
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup small milk cookies (galletas)
Instructions
1
Blend the cooked beans with the coconut milk until smooth, then strain into a pot for a silky base.
2
Add the evaporated milk, sugar, salt, cinnamon sticks, and cloves and bring to a gentle simmer.
3
Add the cubed sweet potato and cook until tender and the mixture thickens, about 30 minutes.
✎ Chef’s note
Stir often once it thickens, and keep the heat gentle. The coconut and starch scorch on the bottom quickly.
4
Stir in the raisins and vanilla, remove the whole spices, and serve warm or chilled with the cookies floated on top.
Dominican Holy Week tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Cibao. The Cibao valley is the Dominican agricultural heartland, where mangu, mashed green plantain, comes with its three companions, los tres golpes: fried salami, fried cheese, and a fried egg, with pickled red onions piled on the plantain itself. Rice, red beans, and stewed meat make up la bandera, the flag, eaten at midday nearly everywhere.
🗺️
Dominican Republic. Sancocho is a Sunday and a celebration rather than a weeknight, and the ambitious version is sancocho de siete carnes, seven meats in one pot with yuca, yautia, ñame and plantain until the broth thickens on its own. La bandera, the everyday plate of rice, beans and stewed meat, takes its name from the flag.
🌍
North America. North America's table began with Indigenous foodways, the "three sisters" of corn, beans, and squash, plus chiles, tomatoes, and cacao, then layered on colonial, African, and immigrant influences. From Mexico's UNESCO-recognized cuisine to the Cajun and Creole pots of Louisiana and the fiery jerk of the Caribbean, the region turns ancient staples into something new. Barbecue, tacos, gumbo, and mole all carry stories of migration and adaptation.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Dominican Republic
MangúSilky mashed green plantains under pickled red onions, the Dominican breakfast that carries the day.
La Bandera DominicanaThe Dominican everyday plate: white rice, stewed red beans, and braised meat, often with fried plantain.
Chicharrón de PolloMarinated chicken pieces dredged and fried crisp, a Dominican favorite from colmado counters and family lunches.
Browse all Dominican Republic recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan, Blender.
Storing it: Keep chilled and covered, and enjoy within 2 to 3 days.
Make it a Dominican Republic meal
La Bandera DominicanaDinner
Morir SoñandoDrink
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Cuisine
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Frequently asked questions
What is Habichuelas con Dulce?
A sweet, creamy pudding of blended red beans, coconut, and sweet potato, a uniquely Dominican Lenten dessert.
Where does Habichuelas con Dulce come from?
Habichuelas con Dulce is a Dominican dish from Cibao, Dominican Republic.
Can Habichuelas con Dulce be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Habichuelas con Dulce recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Habichuelas con Dulce safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Habichuelas con Dulce take to make?
About 70 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 50 minutes cooking), serving 8.
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