Tres Leches Cake means three kinds of milk, and it’s a very popular Mexican dessert.  It’s a sweet cake that is soaked in three kinds of milk resulting in a super moist cake.  When served, the milk comes oozing out of the cake.  It is delicious!

Tres Leches Cake.

Tres Leches Cake is a classic Mexican dessert loved by many.  This light and airy cake is totally like a sponge, soaking up a combination of 3 different kinds of milk until it’s absolutely drowning in milk. 

When you serve a piece of this luscious cake, the milk will be oozing out of it and onto the dessert plate.  This is one of the easiest cakes you’ll ever make too.  There are just 3 steps to making this easy cake.

How to make this cake

The Cake Batter

The cake batter takes just minutes to mix.  It has real butter and vanilla in it, a great beginning to any moist vanilla cake.  Cake flour is used for a super soft texture.

The Milks

Treas Leches means 3 milks.  This cake has a combination of sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk and half & half.  Some recipes call for whipping cream or whole milk instead of half & half.

The cooled cake gets lots of holes poked in it with either a fork or a wooden skewer. The 3 milks get mixed together and poured over the cooled cake.   It’s important to refrigerate the cake for 12 hours or overnight after pouring the milk mixture over it.

Tres Leches Cake.

The Topping

The topping is nothing more than some freshly whipped whipping cream.  It has some sugar and pure vanilla added for a touch of sweetness and extra flavor.  The topping doesn’t get spread over the cake until after the cake has been refrigerated overnight.

A piece of Tres Leches Cake with strawberries on top and a forked bite.

This is a great cake to make in the Spring or Summer!

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A serving of Tres Leches Cake with strawberries on top.

Tres Leches Cake

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  • Author: Cindy Gibbs
  • Prep Time: 30 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 13 hours
  • Yield: 16 servings 1x
  • Category: Cakes
  • Method: Bake
  • Cuisine: Mexican
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Description

This popular Mexican cake is soaked in three different kinds of milk, before getting a thick layer of whipped cream spread over the top.

Ingredients

Units Scale

THE CAKE

  • 1 1/2 cups cake flour, spoon & leveled
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon table salt
  • 1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 5 large eggs, room temperature

THE MILK MIXTURE

  • 1 can evaporated milk, 12 ounces
  • 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 14 ounces
  • 3/4 cup half & half
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

THE TOPPING

  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 1/3 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • Freshly sliced strawberries or other fruit
  • Cinnamon, optional

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish and set aside.

THE CAKE

  1. Whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
  2. Add the butter and sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or use a hand mixer.  Mix on medium speed until the mixture is very light and creamy and the sugar is no longer grainy.  Add the vanilla and mix for a few seconds until incorporated.  Add the eggs, one a time, beating well after each addition.  Add the dry ingredients 1/3 at a time, mixing only to incorporate.  Do not overmix!!
  3. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish.  Gently shake the dish back and forth to level out the batter.  Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.  The cake should be a golden brown on top.  Ovens vary.  It took 30 minutes in my oven.  Transfer the cake to a wire rack and allow it to cool completely.  Once the cake has cooled, use a fork or a wooden skewer to poke holes all over the top of the cake.  Set aside.

THE MILK MIXTURE

  1. Whisk together the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, half & half and vanilla.  Slowly pour the mixture over the cake, making sure to cover the entire surface and edges.  Cover and refrigerate the cake for at least 12 hours.

THE TOPPING

  1. Add the whipping cream to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment.  Beat on medium-low speed until the mixture begins to slightly thicken where it doesn’t splatter out of the bowl.  Turn mixer to high and mix until soft peaks begin to form.  Add the vanilla and powdered sugar and whisk on high speed until stiff peaks form, about 45 seconds if using a stand mixer, a little longer with a hand mixer.  Spread the whipped cream evenly over the cake and refrigerate until ready to serve.
  2. Slice the cake and serve cold with fresh strawberries on top or a light sprinkling of cinnamon.  Refrigerate leftovers.

Notes

  • It’s important to refrigerate the cake for at least 12 hours to give the cake time to soak up all of the milk.
  • This cake can be made with all-purpose flour.  I made it with cake flour because cake flour results in a cake with a lighter texture and airier.