Tres Leches
A very popular mexican dessert.
For the longest time my gold standard for Tres leches was the one they served in the Whole foods cafeteria in Paramus, Until I tried a super fresh delicious piece of tres leches at a family owned little restaurant in Zamora Mexico.
Literally translated, Tres Leches means 3 (types of) milks. This uber decadent dessert is a rich moist vanilla cake soaked in 3 different types of milks. I think the natural rich taste and quality of unprocessed milk definitely contributed to the exceptional taste of the tres leches in Zamora, however, another thing I noticed that that one tasted more “milky” than vanilla-y. The americanized tres leches have to much vanilla. I have therefore perfected this recipe to have just enough vanilla to cover the egg-y notes in the cake. the rest of the flavor profile is just the depth of the 3 different types of milk coming through.
You will need:
3 eggs at room temperature
5 tablespoons of butter – soft/ at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 tsp vanilla extract
A pinch of salt
9 inch square baking dish – preferably glass
½ cup Condensed milk
1 cup Evaporated milk
1 ½ cup whole milk
1 cup whipped cream
¼ cup sugar
Sliced fruit – strawberries/ mango/ pineapple (use sweet or canned pineapple, fresh pineapple is too acidic and
might spoil the milk)
- Dry Mix together – 1 cup APF And 1 teaspoon baking powder
- in a mixing bowl, beat together 5 tbsp unsalted butter and 2/3 cup of sugar until creamy
- add the 3 eggs to the butter+sugar – one at a time and keep beating till fluffy
- add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and a pinch of salt and beat until fluffy
- preheat oven at 350 F
- incorporate the flour mixture one big spoon at a time while beating on low speed
- grease a 9 inch square baking dish with butter
- Pour the batter into the lines baking dish and bake the cake for about 20-25 minutes at 350 F
- in a separate big bowl, mix 1/2 cup of condensed milk, 1 cup of evaporated milk and 1.5 cups of regular
whole milk together - remove the cake and let cool
- make holes throughout with a fork and remove from the dish
- put the cake back in the dish – upside down and poke all over with a fork
- once completely cooled, pour the milk mixture on the cake and let it set in the fridge
- once set, layer with whipped cream (1 cup heavy cream + 1/4 cup sugar – beaten together till soft peaks
form) and decorate with sliced strawberries or any fruit/s of your choice - Serve chilled!
