The MOST DELICIOUS Mexican Milk Cake or Tres Leches Cake. This is a light cake that is soaked in a sweet milky mixture and topped with cream and sometimes (in my world anyway), Biscoff too.
This is one of the most requested cakes I have ever made. It is a cake that disappears instantly. For 4 years, I resisted making this cake. It was on my list of cakes to make but I just never got round to making it. Recently I have made up for that by making it many times in quick succession.
The appeal with this cake is its super light texture, that sweet creamy milk that it is bathed in and also that it just melts in the mouth. It is a cake that is great for gatherings - I'm thinking next Eid just in case we aren't able to gather this Eid.
What is Tres Leches Cake?
Tres leches literally means, 'three milks' and this authentic Mexican milk cake is a super light, moist and airy sponge cake soaked in a sweet 3 milk mixture.
The whipped egg whites in the batter make it extra light and spongy.
After baking the cake you poke holes in it with a fork and pour three types of milk over the top–evaporated milk, condensed milk, and whole milk or cream.
Although the cake is very rich in flavour, it doesn't feel that way. I am hoping to brave a layered Tres Leches cake soon after spotting it in one of my many books. Slightly worried about that super light cake standing upon another super light cake but I am sure I will figure it out.
Ingredients for Milk Cake
This recipe uses very simple ingredients, most of which you may have in the house already. Here are the ingredients you will need:
Plain Flour
Baking Powder
Salt
Eggs
Vanilla
Milk
Evaporated Milk
Condensed Milk
Double Cream
Sugar
How to make Tres Leches Cake
Preheat your oven to Gas Mark 4 or 180 C and butter a casserole dish or oven tray.
Then you combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
In a second bowl you beat the egg whites for a minute before adding sugar and beating for another minute. Continue to beat for 1 - 2 minutes until soft peaks are formed.
In a third bowl you beat egg yolks with sugar for 2 minutes.
Then you add the flour mixture to the egg yolk mixture slowly.
Pour into greased tin/dish and bake for 25 - 30 minutes.
Once cooled, pierce all over with a fork and drizzle in the milk.
Leave for 30 minutes. Beat the cream with sugar and either pipe or spread over the top.
Add a drizzle of biscoff too if you like.
Tips for the Best Tres Leches Cake:
- Fold the batter very gently with a spatula until well incorporated. If you mix it vigorously all the volume created from the egg whites will disappear and it needs that for the super light texture.
- Let the cake rest 30 min - 1 hour after pouring on the syrup so it can absorb every drop. It actually tastes much better with soaking time.
- Bake in either an oven tray or pyrex rectangular dish.
- Do not use a brought cake mix in this recipe as it will not be able to absorb the 3 milk mixture without becoming soggy and it won't hold.
- Butter the tin or spray but not up the sides and not till the edges.
- This cake will rise like a souffle and then fall after it has been in contact with cooler air outside of the oven.
- Some people flip the cake upside down before pouring over the 3 milk mixture, so they have a nice flat surface to begin with.
How to store
For super moist results, store in the fridge (covered) or leave on the counter top for several hours.
If you have leftovers (which I promise you won't), they can be stored in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Can it be made ahead of time?
We don't always have time to make desserts on the day that we need them. So desserts that can be made ahead of time are the best. You can make milk cake 3 days in advance.
Making it ahead of time will actually make it taste better because the cake will have a chance to absorb all of that milk up into every last crumb.
You can either add the cream the day you make it or leave that bit till the day you are likely to need it. Both ways work.
Can Tres Leches Cake be frozen?
The cake (minus syrup and deco) can be made ahead of time. Allow to cool and then cover the tin/dish with 2 layers of cling film before freezing for up to 2 months.
When you want to use the cake, thaw in the fridge over night and add the syrup and deco as normal the following day.
You will not be able to freeze the cake once the syrup has been poured in.
Recipe adapted from the Pioneer Woman.
Variations
For a Ras Malai version, add Cardamom and Saffron into the syrup for the cake.
For a Biscoff version, add 1 tbsp of Bischoff into the syrup of the cake as well drizzling some over.
For a Masala Chai version, use milk instead of cream for the syrup and infuse it with masala chai spice and a tea bag in a pan. Place the pan over medium-low heat. When the milk begins to bubble, remove from the heat. Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature. This is best done a day ahead.
More Milk Cakes:
Other Mexican Inspired Recipes you will love:
Smoky Fish Tacos with Jalapeño Slaw and Sriracha, Chipotle Mayo
Chicken, Jalapeno and Lime Taco Soup
*If you love this recipe, please rate and comment. We love to hear from you and your support means so much. It also helps us to shape future content - Safira x
Milk Cake
The MOST DELICIOUS Mexican Milk Cake or Tres Leches Cake. This is a light cake that is soaked in a sweet milky mixture and topped with cream and sometimes (in my world anyway), Biscoff too.
Ingredients
- 125 g Plain Flour 1 Cup
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1 ½ tsp Baking Powder
- 5 large Eggs
- 200 g Caster Sugar 1 Cup (Divide into 3/4 cup - 150g and 1/4 cup - 50g)
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 80 g Milk 1/3 Cup
Milk Syrup
- 410 g Evaporated Milk
- 397 g Condensed Milk
- 200 g Double Cream
Cream
- 480 g Double Cream 2 Cups
- 2 tbsp Caster Sugar
- 2 tbsp Biscoff Melted (Optional)
Instructions
-
Preheat the oven to 180 °C/Gas Mark 4.
-
Butter a 9 x 13 oven tray or casserole dish leaving a 1 cm gap around the edges, do not butter the sides. Adjust oven rack to middle of oven.
Dry Ingredients
-
Combine flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.
Eggs
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Seperate 5 eggs - Put the egg & yolks in 2 seperate bowls.
-
Beat the egg whites on high until soft peaks form. This take around a minute. With the machine still running, add 50g/1/4 cup caster sugar and beat on high until egg whites are stiff (1 minute).
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Stir in 80g or 1/3 cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla into egg yolk mixture.
Complete Cake batter
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Add flour mixture to egg yolk mixture bit by bit, stirring very gently inbetween.
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Gently fold in egg white mixture with a spatula till just combined.
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Pour batter into tin or dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Milk Syrup
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In a large cup combine the ingredients under Milk Syrup and whisk together.
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When the cake is cool, pierce all over with a fork. Slowly drizzle the milk mixture over the cake. Set aside for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Cream topping
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In a large bowl combine double cream and sugar and whip on high until thick. This takes around 3 - 5 minutes. Keep a very close eye on it though.
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Spread cream over the cake with a spatula then drizzle with biscoff if using.
Recipe Notes
- Fold the batter very gently with a spatula until well incorporated. If you mix it vigorously, all the volume created from the egg whites will disappear and it needs that for the super light texture.
- Let the cake rest 30 min - 1 hour after pouring on the syrup so it can absorb every drop. It actually tastes much better with soaking time.
- Bake in either an oven tray or pyrex rectangular dish.
- Do not use a brought cake mix in this recipe as it will not be able to absorb the 3 milk mixture without becoming soggy and it won't hold together.
- You can add fresh fruit to the top of the cake but I much prefer it without.
- Nutrition info is an estimate only.
- You can reserve some syrup and add pour it around the cake before serving.
Sabaa says
We love this recipe we have been using it for a couple of years now! I wanted to ask do the calories include the biscoff spread?
Thanks x
Safira says
Hi Sabaa,
Thankyou!
I am so glad that you have been enjoying this recipe.
Biscoff spread has 87 calories per tablespoon so it would be 565 calories per slice with 2 tbsp of Biscoff or 391 without. x