If you have been looking for an easy dessert to impress, make this three milk cake (also known as Tres Leches). It’s quick to make, super moist and tastes delicious. This sweet decadent dessert is perfect for any occasion.
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Why You'll Love This Recipe
- This Three Milk Cake can be enjoyed at room temperature and cold straight from the fridge perfect for hot summer days.
- It’s very easy to make.
- Can be made up to three days in advance.
- It’s budget friendly.
What Nationality is Tres Leches Cake?
Tres Leches (three milk cake) is originally from Latin America. It is said that it was made popular in the 1930’s when Nestle printed a recipe for Tres Leches on the cans of evaporated milk, condensed milk and cream cans. You can read more about it’s origins here.
What Is Tres Leches Made Of?
There are many different variations of three milk cake. Essentially, it’s a sponge cake soaked in a milk sauce made with evaporated milk, condensed milk and cream.
My version is a butter free sponge cake, that’s light and full of air bubbles. The milk sauce is poured over the freshly baked cake where it is soaked for at least 20 minutes. After that, the cake can be decorated, served and enjoyed.
Step By Step Instructions
Make The Cake
This recipe starts with a homemade vanilla sponge cake. This cake is fairly quick to make using a stand mixer or hand mixer. Start by beating the egg whites until thick and frothy, then gradually add in the sugar, beating until thick and glossy.
Next, beat in the egg yolks one at a time, followed by the flour and milk. The cake is then baked in a moderately hot oven for about 20 minutes.
There is no need to wait for the cake to cool, the cake can be soaked in the milk sauce while it is still hot.
Soaking The Cake In Milk Sauce
To soak the cake, you will need a large shallow dish to place the cake in. The dish needs to be wider than the cake, but not too deep. This will make it easier to remove the slices of cake after soaking.
As you can see from the picture below, I used one of my biggest cooking pans. It was wide enough with the sides not too high. The low sides made it easier to remove pieces of cake with a cake slice.
Use a fork, knife or skewer to poke holes over the top of the cake. You don’t need to poke all the way down to the bottom of the cake.
Evenly pour the milk sauce over the top of the cake, where some of the sauce will trickle through the poked holes. The rest will run down the sides of the cake and collect at the bottom of the pan.
Allow the cake to stand in the sauce for about 20 – 30 minutes. In this time the cake will have absorbed almost all of the milk sauce.
You can now cut and serve the cake. Use a cake slice to transfer a piece of cake to a shallow bowl. Pour a little extra milk sauce over the cake and let the sauce pool around the cake. Decorate with whipped cream and a mint leaf.
FAQ
Does Three Milk Cake (Tres Leches) Need To Be Refrigerated?
Yes, it does need refrigeration because of the milk.
Can I Make The Three Milk Cake In Advance?
Yes, you can!
There are two ways you can do it.
- You can bake and soak the cake up to two days in advance. Then cut and decorate the cake on the day or,
- You can bake the cake in advance, then soak and decorate it on the day you intend to serve it.
Although this cake will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge, it’s best eaten within two days when it is still quite fresh.
If you have soaked the cake in one of your cooking pots (like I did) you will want to transfer the soaked cake to another dish for storage.
Transferring the whole cake can be difficult because it is so moist. The easiest way is to cut the cake into quarters or eighths and remove piece by piece.
These cake pieces can then be placed side by side in another dish, covered and refrigerated until needed. On the day plate slices of the three milk cake, decorate and drizzle with milk sauce and serve.
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Recipe
Easy Three Milk Cake Recipe (Tres Leches)
Equipment
- Stand mixer or handheld
- 22 cm round spring form cake tin
- Shallow dish larger than the cake tin
Ingredients
Cake
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 140 grams (4.93 ounces) sugar
- 150 grams (5.29 ounces) plain flour all purpose
- 10 grams (0.35 ounces) )baking powder
- 62 grams (21.8 ounces) whole milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Sauce
- 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1 cup cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Decoration
- Whipped cream and mint leaves or any type of small berry.
Instructions
Making the cake.
- Pre-heat the oven to 170°C (340°F)
- Grease the sides and line the base of a 22 cm (8-9 inches) spring form cake tin.
- Separate the eggs into two small blows. Put aside.
- Combine the flour and baking powder and mix well. Put aside.
- Mix the vanilla into the milk. Put aside.
- Add the egg white into a large mixing bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites on high speed for about 3 – 5 minutes, or until it the whites have become thick and frothy.
- Gradually the add the sugar to the egg whites, beating on high speed for about 3 - 5 minutes or until the egg whites are thick and glossy looking.
- Still on high speed, add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well between each addition.
- Reduce speed to medium. Slowly and alternating, add the flour and the vanilla milk and mix until combined. Turn the mixer off.
- Use a spatula to scrape down and clean the inside of the bowl and fold it into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin, gently tapping the filled tin on the bench several times before placing into the in the pre-heated oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
- Remove from the cake from the oven and allow to stand in the tin for 5 minutes.
While the cake is standing in the tin prepare the milk sauce.
- Combine all the sauce ingredients, mix well and divide the mixture into two. One half will be used to soak the cake and the other half for serving. Put aside.
Soaking the cake in the milk sauce.
- Remove the cake from the tin and remove the paper lining from the base of the cake.
- Transfer the cake to a large shallow dish. <-- Note 1
- Use a fork, skewer or knife to poke holes into the top of the cake.
- Using one half the mix sauce mixture. Slowly pour it evenly over the warm cake. Allow the cake to soak and absorb the sauce for at least 30 minutes before cutting and serving.
To serve.
- Cut the cake into slices and place onto a side plate that has a slightly raised edge. Pour over some of the remaining sauce, pipe or spoon on some whipped cream, garnish with a mint leaf or fresh fruit.
Chef Mireille says
I just came back from Mexico where I had a slice of this delicious cake one night. it is one of my all time fave latin desserts and yours looks executed perfectly!
Harriet Britto says
Thanks and it has become one of my favourites too.
sneha datar says
Soft and moist cake, love it
Harriet Britto says
Thank you.
Karen says
Tres leches cake is on my long list of recipes to try!
Harriet Britto says
Karen, please do try this recipe. I'm sure you won't be disappointed.