Tres Leches!
I’ll admit I’m not a huge cake person. It’s usually dry and the frosting that people to choose to compensate said dry cake is usually overtly sweet. Growing up in National City I was very blessed to surrounded by the Hispanic culture, and of course, the food! Yes! Tres Leches literally translates to “three milks”. This cake is extremely forgiving, comes out very moist, and is an amazing dessert to end the evening with after a charcoal charred carne asada celebration!
Cake:
5 eggs (seperated)
1 ¼ cup of unbleached flour
2 tsp of baking powder
1 cup of regular granulated sugar
1 tbs of vanilla
½ cup of milk
¼ tsp of salt
¼ tsp of cinnamon
Leches:
⅔ cup of regular milk
1 12 oz can of evaporated milk
1 14 oz can of condensed milk
Regular Whip Cream:
¼ cup of powdered sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla
2 cups of heavy whipping cream
Cut strawberries tossed in a tablespoon of sugar for garnish*
Overall Ingredient Checklist (without homemade whipping cream)
Refrigerated:
5 large eggs
About 1 ½ cup of milk
Baking and Spices:
1 cup of sugar
1 ¼ cup of all purpose flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
¼ teaspoon of salt
¼ teaspoon of cinnamon
3 teaspoons of vanilla
Liquids and Oils:
1 12 oz can of evaporated milk
1 14 oz can of condensed milk
Butter or spray to grease baking pan
Equipment needed: 2 medium bowls, 1 large bowl, a stand in mixer or a hand mixer, A 9 x 13 inch baking pan
If you do not want to splurge on a stand mixer, this hand mixer here will do the job!
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees
Separate your 5 large eggs from their egg whites and egg yolks, into two medium sized bowls.
To your egg yolks, add ¾ cup of granulated white sugar, and stir until fluffy (about 5 minutes)
Then add your 2 tablespoons of vanilla extract and stir again.
In your other medium bowl with your egg whites, take your hand or stand mixer and whisk until white and fluffy. Then add ¼ cup of sugar and whisk again until smooth.
In a large bowl, add in your 1 ¼ cup of all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, ¼ teaspoon of salt, and ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon and stir with a fork until fully combined.
Add your egg yolk mixture to your dry ingredients, along with ½ cup of milk and stir
Fold in your egg white mixture and stir gently (do not over stir)
Grease your 9x13 baking pan (or two 10 inch round pie pans)
Add your batter and let it bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick is inserted and comes out smoothly.
In a bowl add one 12 oz can of evaporated milk, one 14 oz can of condensed milk, ⅔ cup of regular milk and stir to combine.
Take out the cake and use a chopstick to poke holes into the cake.
Slowly add your milk mixture to the cake, being careful to make sure it is “taking” the milk.
Afterward, add your cake into your oven while it is off but still warm and let it still for 10 minutes.
Afterward, let your cake sit in the fridge, covered, overnight
The next day, cut strawberries and toss in a tablespoon of sugar, or use your favorite canned fruits as a garnish
(If you are making your own whip cream, add 2 cups of heavy cream to your stand in mixer and whip on high for about 5 minutes, then add ¼ cup of powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and whip until peaks form.)
You can also stabilize it using gelatin *
Add your whip cream of choice on top, sprinkle with cinnamon, and add your fruit garnishes!
Tips:
Separating your ingredients allows for a fluffier cake, and making sure your dry ingredients can become fully incorporated before being added to the wet ingredients.
Try not to butcher your cake when creating holes! (Slow and steady is the best way)
A lot of people allow their cake to cool before adding their tres leches, but I found that doing it warm (even adding it to the turned off oven afterward), helps to distribute the milk in better!
If you are stabilizing your whip cream, whip your heavy cream, add 1/2 package of gelatin to ½ cup of water and let it dissolve, then add to the microwave for about 20 seconds and stir, let it cool completely. After your whip cream has started to create peaks, add in your powdered sugar and vanilla. Then after about 3 minutes on high, while it is still mixing, add in your gelatin! Now you have whip cream that won’t melt!
