There's more than one good reason why this Tres Leches is irresistible and so popular: For some, it's the rich, creamy sauce that bathes it; for others, it's the moist cake; and for others still, it's the delicious topping. For me, it's all three. Try it, and you'll see that you'll love it.
By - Reviewed: . Original: Jun 2, 2004
❝ I made this cake twice and it came out perfect both times and never a piece left... ❞
Why we ❤️ it
Despite the sweetness and richness, tres leches is not a cloying cake. And therein lies its danger.
Its smooth, moist texture easily leads to overeating. A sin I have most definitely been known to have indulged in. Because if gluttony is the cause of your downfall, you can't make a better choice than this dessert to do it.
What's tres leches
Tres leches is a dessert made with a sponge cake soaked in a "tres leches" (three milk) sauce and topped with whipped cream (or meringue).
Read more about the origins of Tres leches.
Tres leches cake.
Serving suggestions
This cake is perfect for serving as dessert after a weekend lunch, or for celebrating a Dominican-style birthday.
Top tips
- Making the icing: Adding a bit of cream cheese to the whipped cream prevents it from collapsing and maintains its consistency for longer. It will not taste like cream cheese in the end.
- Icing: This cake can be served topped with whipped cream or meringue (suspiro). For the suspiro, follow this suspiro recipe (with video).
The instructions in this recipe show you how to make the whipped cream topping.
About this recipe
There are a couple of bakeries in Santo Domingo famous for their tres leches (three-milk cake). Each version is slightly different, especially their textures and sweetness levels.
For this cake to work we need it to be spongy, a little on the dry side, and not greasy. This is because once you add the "sauce" if the cake is too fluffy it'll just break and dissolve into the sauce.
This recipe always works for me.
Although a popular variation is to replace the cream with meringue, I prefer it with cream. Which do you prefer? Let me know in the comments.
Video
Recipe
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Tres Leches [Video+Recipe] Three-Milk Cake
Ingredients
For prepping pan
- 1 tablespoon salted butter, to grease pan
- 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, to dust pan
To make batter
- 3 egg (medium), eggs and yolks separated
- 1 cup sugar (white, granulated), [187 g], divided
- 1⅓ cup all-purpose flour, [140 g]
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¾ stick salted butter, [173 g] at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For garnishing
- 1¼ cup evaporated milk, [296 ml]
- ½ cup skim milk, [237 ml]
- ¾ cup condensed milk, [177 ml]
- ¾ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup whipping cream
- ½ cup powdered white sugar, [100 g]
- 1 tablespoon cream cheese
- Strawberries, or cherries for decoration (optional)
Instructions
1. Prepping
Grease with butter and dust with flour a baking pan (3" height x 9" diameter [7.5 cm high x 22.5 cm diam]).Heat oven to 350 °F [175 °C].
2. Whipping egg whites
- Using the wire whisk of your mixer beat the whites until they form peaks, starting at low speed, then increasing in a few seconds. Add half the sugar and beat until it forms firm peaks and it's shiny. Set aside.
3. Sifting flour
- Mix flour and baking powder and sift. Set aside.
4. Making batter
Using the paddle attachment of your mixer beat butter and yolks for 3 minutes at medium-high speed.Add the remaining sugar and beat until it is light and fluffy and has a very light yellow color (about 5 mins). Add vanilla extract, then slowly add the flour in three parts, beating until the flour is thoroughly combined before adding another third.⚠️ Once all the flour has been added and mixed in, it will be very thick, with consistency between batter and cookie dough. That's OK.- Add ⅓ of the egg whites. Using a spatula, fold the egg whites into the batter. Add the remaining white in two steps folding in each time with the spatula. ⚠️ At this point, it'll be a smooth batter with a lot of air incorporated.
5. Baking
- Pour the batter into the baking pan.Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and it has a golden color on top (about 30 mins).
6. Removing from mold
- Cool to room temperature before removing from the pan. Cut the crust.Place on a lipped plate that can hold the milk sauce.
7. Mixing sauce
- Mix evaporated, skim, and condensed milk. Mix in the vanilla extract.
8. Soaking the cake
- Pour the milk mixture on top of the cake and let it soak in. Bathing it regularly until it has absorbed half of the liquid (one to two hours) keeping it in the refrigerator all this time.You can make the topping while it chills.
9. Making the topping
- If you are going to use suspiro as the topping, use this recipe.If you will use whipped cream as the topping, chill the mixer bowl and wire whisk for at least half an hour beforehand (or 20 minutes in the freezer).Whisk the whipping cream over medium-high speed until it starts to form peaks (about 3 mins).Add the powdered sugar and cream cheese (see notes) and whisk until it is mixed in and has formed firm peaks, but careful not to overdo it, or the cream will turn into butter.
10. Decorating
- Spread the whipped cream on the chilled cake and decorate with strawberries or cherries.
11. Serving and storing
Keep refrigerated until serving.⚠️ Best consumed within 24 hours.
Cook's Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated automatically based on ingredients listed. Please consult your doctor if you need precise nutrition information.
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More cake recipes
If you're looking for more cake ideas to celebrate your next party or get-together, here are the most popular Dominican cakes: The Dominican cake is a must for birthdays, and for something simpler, you can make it in the form of cupcakes. Don't miss our Tarta helada cake, perfect for summer celebrations.
History of tres leches
There are many theories on the origin of tres leches cake; whatever it might be the fact is that it has become part of our vernacular cuisine and one of everybody's favorites.
The arrival of tres leches to our country is relatively recent. The first time I saw it was sometime in the early 80s when it suddenly became the "belle du jour" in every bakery. This aligns with the theory that it became known in Latin America (possibly Central America) around the time that canned evaporated milk became a household item in the 40s[1], slowly spreading to the rest of the continent.
The recipe for tres leches do not appear in any of my pre-1990s Dominican cookbooks. I stopped looking after that.
References
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