If you are looking for a delicious dessert that will impress your guests, then Tres Leches Cake is the perfect choice. This classic Latin American cake is made with three types of milk, which make it moist and flavorful, and topped with homemade whipped cream and cherries for a beautiful presentation. This simple Mexican dessert is one of my favorites, and I hope it becomes one of yours!
TRES LECHES CAKE
What’s a Tres Leches Cake?
Tres leches translate to “Three milks.” A Tres Leches Cake is a light, airy cake that has been soaked in a mixture of three types of milk. This is extremely popular in Latin America, particularly in Mexico. This cake is one of my favorites. It’s rich, moist, and perfect for any occasion. It is often served on special occasions such as birthdays, weddings, and holidays like Cinco de Mayo.
Making a Tres Leches Cake is very simple. It has three components: The cake, the three milk mixtures, and the toppings.
The Cake: This cake is so soft and fluffy, making it easier to soak the three kinds of milk. The trick for making this cake so spongy relies on the eggs. It’s essential to separate the egg yolks from the whites. Another important ingredient is flour. In this recipe, I used this cake flour because I believe it makes the cake very fluffy. However, regular flour works as well.
Milk Mixture: The cake is soaked into a perfect combination of three kinds of milk. In this recipe, I used evaporated milk, condensed milk, and media crema.
Topping: the final touch to this delicious cake is the toppings. In this recipe, I covered the cake with homemade whipped cream and some cherries.
Ingredients to make Tres Leches Cake:
The cake:
-
- Flour All-purpose flour or cake flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Eggs (room temperature)
- Granulated sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Whole milk
The tres leches combination:
-
- Evaporated milk)
- Condensed milk
- Media crema
Homemade whipped cream:
-
- Heavy cream
- Granulated sugar
To garnish:
Cherries (make sure to drain well the syrup)
How to make Tres Leches Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly spray or spread some butter and flour in a 9×13” baking pan.
In a mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Then, In two separate mixing bowls, separate egg whites from yolks.
Add sugar to egg yolks and with a hand mixer or stand mixer, mix on high until egg yolks go from a bright yellow to a pale yellow color. Add whole milk and vanilla to the egg yolk mixture and combine using a spatula. Set aside.
Using the hand mixer again, mix the egg whites until stiff peaks are formed and set aside.
Pour the egg yolk mixture into the flour and gently mix using a spatula until well combined. Then, gently pour the egg white mixture into the flour mixture. It’s very important to handle this with care by using the spatula with soft and gentle strokes until combined.
Pour the batter into the baking pan and place in the oven. Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and allow the cake to cool down completely. Then, combine the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and whole milk in a bowl. Once the cake has cooled use a fork to poke holes all over the top of the cake.
Slowly pour the milk mixture over the top of the cake, making sure to pour near the edges and all around. Refrigerate the cake for at least 1 hour or overnight, to allow it to soak up the milk.
In the meantime, whip the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla until stiff peaks. Smooth over the top of the cake. Finally, garnish the cake with cherries. Make sure to drain well the syrup before using them to decorate the cake.
Enjoy!
TRES LECHES CAKE
Ingredients
Ingredients to make the cake:
- 1 cup all purpose flour or cake flour
- 1½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 5 large eggs room temperature
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅓ cup whole milk
The tres leches combination:
- 1 12oz. evaporated milk
- 1 14 oz. sweetened condensed milk
- 1 7.6 oz. media crema
Homemade whipped cream:
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 2 ½ tablespoon granulated sugar or powdered sugar
To garnish:
- 1 cup cherries make sure to drain the syrup
Instructions
How to make Tres Leches Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly spray or spread some butter and flour in a 9×13” baking pan.
- In a mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Then, in two separate mixing bowls, separate the egg whites from the yolks.
- Add sugar to egg yolks, and with a hand mixer or stand mixer, mix on high until egg yolks go from a bright yellow to a pale yellow color. Add whole milk and vanilla to the egg yolk mixture and combine using a spatula. Set aside.
- Using the hand mixer again, mix the egg whites until stiff peaks are formed and set aside.
- Pour the egg yolk mixture into the flour and gently mix using a spatula until well combined. Then, gently pour the egg white mixture into the flour mixture. It’s very important to handle this with care by using the spatula with soft and gentle strokes until combined.
- Pour the batter into the baking pan and place it in the oven. Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool completely. Then, combine the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and crema in a bowl. Once the cake has cooled, use a fork to poke holes all over the top of the cake.
- Slowly pour the milk mixture over the top of the cake, making sure to pour near the edges and all around. Refrigerate the cake for at least 1 hour or overnight, to allow it to soak up the milk.
- In the meantime, whip the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla until stiff peaks form. Smooth over the top of the cake. Finally, garnish the cake with cherries. Make sure to drain the syrup well before using it to decorate the cake.
Notes
Nutrition
Tell me what you think of this recipe, and if you have any questions, don’t forget to get in touch with me. I’m always happy to hear from YOU.
Until the next one…
