This is The Best Tres Leches Cake Recipe you will ever eat. It’s a moist and slightly sweet sponge cake with a hint of cinnamon, soaked in a 3-milk mixture, then topped with a fresh whipped topping. This is a simple Mexican dessert that everyone will love.
What Is Tres Leches Cake?
A Tres Leches cake is an authentic Mexican cake! It’s a moist cake soaked in 3 milks then topped with a light and fluffy whipped topping. Some like to add cinnamon in the cake batter or dust the top of the cake with cinnamon before serving. Tres Leches means 3 kinds of milk: Whole milk, evaporated milk, and sweetened condensed milk.
Ingredients Needed For Tres Leches Cake
- All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Cinnamon
- Eggs
- White Sugar
- Vanilla
- Whole Milk
- Sweetened Condensed Milk
- Evaporated Milk
- Heavy Whipping Cream
- Powdered Sugar
- Strawberries For Topping
How To Make The Best Tres Leches Cake
1-Preheat oven to 350F and grease a 9×13 cake pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place 3/4 cup white sugar into an oven safe dish and place in the oven while it preheats.
2-In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
3-Seperate egg yolks and egg whites into two medium size mixing bowls. In the bowl with egg yolks, add 3/4 cup warm sugar from the oven, and vanilla. Beat with a hand mixer until fluffy.
4-Add egg yolk mixture to large bowl with dry ingredients and beat until just combined. Mix 1/2 cup whole milk into batter until combined.
5-Beat egg whites until they start to get foamy and white in color. Add in remaining 1/4 cup white sugar and beat until on high until a stiff peak forms (6-7 minutes). Fold stiff peak egg whites into cake batter.
6-Pour cake batter into greased 9×13 cake pan and bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes or until top of cake is golden and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted. Allow cake to cool to room temperature, then poke holes in cake with a fork.
7-In a medium size mixing bowl combine whole milk, sweetened condensed milk, and evaporated milk. Pour milk mixture evenly over entire cake. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.
8-After cake has had time to chill, prepare the whipped topping. In a large mixing bowl beat heavy whipping cream with a hand mixer until it starts to thicken. Add powdered sugar and vanilla and continue beating on high until soft peaks form.
9-Spread whipped topping over cake. Serve with fresh strawberries or a sprinkle of cinnamon on top. Enjoy!
Can I Make This Cake Ahead Of Time?
Tres Leches Cake can and should be made up to 6 hours or overnight. The longer the cake has a chance to absorb the milk mixture, the sweeter it will be. The cake can even be frosted with whipped topping several hours before serving. The great thing about the homemade whipped topping is it holds its shape on the cake for several days.
Tips For The Best Trest Leches Cake
- Warm The Sugar: Place 3/4 cups white granulated sugar in an oven safe dish in the oven while it is preheating. Warm sugar gives the eggs more volume when whipped.
- Measure Ingredients Correctly: Be sure to measure your dry and wet ingredients correctly to ensure your cake has the right texture. Adding too much flour can cause the cake to become dense.
- Don’t Overmix: It’s important to not overmix cake batter! Mix batter until it is just combined and fold in egg whites, this cake relies on eggs for the volume.
- Cool Completely: Cool cake Completely before poking holes and pouring the milk mixture over cake. This will allow the cake to absorb all the delicious milk.
FAQ’s For Tres Leches Cake
1-What Kind Of Milk Goes Into Tres Leches? I love to use the combination of whole milk, sweetened condensed milk, and evaporated milk.
2-How long Does Tres Leches Cake Last? Tres leches can will last up to 4 days if covered and refridgerated.
3-Can Tres Leches Cake Be Frozen? Yes, you can freeze the base of the Tres Leches cake. Allow it to cool completely, cover tightly and freeze for up to 2 months. When you are ready to serve, thaw overnight and prepare as directed below.
4-Is Tres Leches Supposed To Be Soggy? Tres Leches is not supposed to be soggy, but it is supposed to be moist. There is a good amount of liquid pour over the cake, so I don’t recommend using a box cake mix. This sponge cake absorbs liquid well.
Other Favorite Cake Recipes
- Strawberry Poke Cake
- Easy Boston Cream Pie Cake
- Cinnamon Roll Cake With Cream Cheese Glaze
- Peanut Butter Banana Cake
- Lemon Raspberry Poke Cake
The Best Tres Leches Cake Recipe
Ingredients
Cake Batter
- 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
- 5 large eggs, divided
- 1 cup white sugar, divided
- 2 tsp. vanilla
- 1/2 cup whole milk
3 Milk Mixture
- 2/3 cup whole milk
- 1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
- 1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
Whipped Topping
- 1 pint heavy whipping cream
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and grease a 9×13 cake pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Place 3/4 cup white sugar into an oven safe dish and place in the oven while it preheats.
- In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
- Separate egg yolks and egg whites into two medium size mixing bowls.
- In the bowl with egg yolks, add 3/4 cup warm sugar from the oven, and vanilla. Beat with a hand mixer until fluffy.
- Add egg yolk mixture to large bowl with dry ingredients and beat until just combined.
- Mix 1/2 cup whole milk into batter until combined.
- Beat egg whites until they start to get foamy and white in color. Add in remaining 1/4 cup white sugar and beat until on high until a stiff peak forms (6-7 minutes).
- Fold stiff peak egg whites into cake batter.
- Pour cake batter into greased 9×13 cake pan and bake in a preheated oven for 30 minutes or until top of cake is golden and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted.
- Allow cake to cool to room temperature, then poke holes in cake with a fork.
- In a medium size mixing bowl combine whole milk, sweetened condensed milk, and evaporated milk. Pour milk mixture evenly over entire cake. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- After cake has had time to chill, prepare the whipped topping. In a large mixing bowl beat heavy whipping cream with a hand mixer until it starts to thicken. Add powdered sugar and vanilla and continue beating on high until soft peaks form.
- Spread whipped topping over cake. Serve with fresh strawberries or a sprinkle of cinnamon on top. Enjoy!
Notes
Have You Tried This Recipe?
RATE and COMMENT below! I would love to hear your experience. Getting feedback from you helps me and other readers too!
Also, if you share on INSTAGRAM, use the hashtag #modernmealmakeover and tag me (@modernmealmakeover) so we can stop by and give your post some love. Thank you!
