Tres leche cake is soooooooo delicious.

[iheartscience]

I just ate a giant piece of amazing and delicious tres leche cake. Oh my God I LOVE tres leche cake. I think I might get one made for my wedding, actually! No real point here, but I felt compelled to talk about my delicious cake!

Anybody else love them some tres leche cake?

P.S. Don''t tell my friends in the Healthy Lifestyle thread about this post!

 

[Selkie]

Oh, my god, my husband introduced me to tres leches cake, and whenever we can get it from the Cuban bakery we just gorge ourselves. Yum. Now my stomach is growling.

 

[Skippy123]

Date: 6/5/2008 7:36:47 PM
Author:thing2of2
I just ate a giant piece of amazing and delicious tres leche cake. Oh my God I LOVE tres leche cake. I think I might get one made for my wedding, actually! No real point here, but I felt compelled to talk about my delicious cake!

Anybody else love them some tres leche cake?

P.S. Don''t tell my friends in the Healthy Lifestyle thread about this post!

Naughty girl

What does it taste like?? I have never had it before, I am totally intrigued; I wonder where I could find it here???

Now you have me wanting cake, between pies and cake I am getting hungry

 

[FrekeChild]

Skippy, you should be able to find it here. We had to make them at least 3 times before we could pass my first baking class.

I haven''t had any in a long time...hmmmm....(I''m thinking of tres leches cupcakes...)

 

[zoebartlett]

I''ve never had it but it sounds yummy. It''s caramel flavored, right?

 

[Skippy123]

Date: 6/5/2008 7:46:55 PM
Author: FrekeChild
Skippy, you should be able to find it here. We had to make them at least 3 times before we could pass my first baking class.

I haven't had any in a long time...hmmmm....(I'm thinking of tres leches cupcakes...)

Where? Does Flyingstar have it? FG, said it was moist and yummy! Is it carmel flavored?

 

[iheartscience]

You can get different flavors, but I like vanilla the best! The Cuban place here just has vanilla and chocolate. It''s called tres leche because there are three milks. (Duh!) I know there''s condensed milk and maybe also heavy cream or whipped cream and then regular milk?

I''ll let Freke fill you in on the details! But the cake is super moist-I think they actually pour milk over it or something. Again, I could be totally making that up...Freke to the rescue!

 

[iheartscience]

Skippy you have to have some! It''s amazing...and hard on my lactose-intolerant stomach, but I eat it anyways sometimes!

I actually ate the entire huge piece myself and I feel just a smidge sick, but it was totally worth it!

 

[iheartscience]

Date: 6/5/2008 7:39:33 PM
Author: Selkie
Oh, my god, my husband introduced me to tres leches cake, and whenever we can get it from the Cuban bakery we just gorge ourselves. Yum. Now my stomach is growling.

Yes, gorge is the right word for me...I just had to eat every last bite! I need a "stomach is distended from all the food in it" emoticon!

 

[iheartscience]

Date: 6/5/2008 7:48:40 PM
Author: ZoeBartlett
I''ve never had it but it sounds yummy. It''s caramel flavored, right?

Zoe, you have to try it too! OMG...it will blow your mind!

 

[laine]

Its so yummy! I''d never had it before when I found a recipe in a magazine, I decided to make it since it looked good, and wow! Loved it!

Heres the recipe I used (Freke, feel free to improve on it):

Cake
1 two-layer-size regular white cake mix
3/4 cup butter, softened
6 eggs
1/2 cup water
2 tbsp finely shredded lime peel (I didn''t have this)

Preheat over to 350. Grease and flour a 10 inch springform pan (I used two round 9 inch cake pans to make two smaller cakes). Combine cake mix, butter, eggs, and water, beat at low speed till combined, then at medium speed for 2 minutes. Stir in lime peel. Pour into prepared pan, bake 50 minutes or till skewer comes out clean (less time with two cake pans). Let cool.

Line large container with plastic wrap. Slice cake in half horizontally. Place top half of cake, cut side up, in prepared container. Spread with filling (below), then place bottom half of cake, cut side down, on top. Poke holes all over cake with skewer or fork. Pour on sauce (below), soaking cake; reserve a cup or so of sauce. Chill 8 hours, pouring on remaining sauce 1 hour before serving. Invert onto serving plate. Spread with whipped cream and serve immediately.

Tres Leches Sauce
1 12 ounce can evaporated milk
1 14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups milk
Combine in saucepan, cook over medium heat until just boiling, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, transfer to large bowl, cover and cool.

Whipped cream
1 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla
Combine in chilled bowl, and whip with mixer.

Filling
3 cups fresh strawberries chopped or any sort of berry jam

 

[FrekeChild]

I don't have a recipe for it handy, but it's basically a genoise (drier egg based cake) soaked almost to the point of falling apart with sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and regular milk. Frosted with whipped cream. We had a bit of cinnamon added to our syrup, and no lime zest. And then we put sliced strawberries on top.

You guys are thinking of Dulce De Leche-the caramelized milk flavoring.

Speaking of dulce de leche though...dulce de leche tres leches would be fantastic.

Yummy.

And Skippy, I don't think that Flying Star has it. At least, I've never seen it there. And the online bakery part of the menu for their site isn't up yet. Hmmm...

ETA: The recipe that laine posted sounds pretty good to me (of course I'd make it all from scratch, but I'm weird like that...). The reason for the high egg content is that it should create a lighter crumb that will absorb the milks better.

 

[FireGoddess]

It''s not my fave because I don''t like my cake being soppy wet, but it does taste pretty good! I made tres leches cupcakes for cinco de mayo and they were a big hit at work.

 

[Harriet]

I love it. And I also love dulce de leche.

 

[Miranda]

MMMMMmmmmmmmmm! There was an article in my paper about it this morning. It is a terrible thing to start the morning off thinking of cake and never getting any *folds arms hard* I hope to have some time on Sunday to bake, but, I may be tooooo tired as I have a busy Saturday!

 

[Kaleigh]

I''ve never had it, but it sure sounds delish!!!

 

[diamondfan]

Yummy. I would love to try it.

 

[DMBsGirl]

it is def yummy, but not good for the pre-wedding diet!

 

[ericad]

Trying out this recipe tonight (found online), will let you know how it turns out

(this thread got my mouth watering)

INGREDIENTS

* 3/4 cup butter, softened
* 1 1/2 cups white sugar
* 9 egg yolks
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 cups all-purpose flour
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 1 cup milk
* 9 egg whites
* 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
*
* 2 cups heavy whipping cream
* 1 (5 ounce) can evaporated milk
* 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
*
* 2 cups heavy whipping cream
* 1 cup white sugar


DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well with each addition, then stir in the vanilla. Sift together the flour and baking powder. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk; beat well after each addition. In a large glass or metal mixing bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar until whites form stiff peaks. Gently fold the egg whites into the cake batter using a rubber spatula. Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.
4. In a small bowl, stir together the 2 cups heavy cream, evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk. Pour the mixture over the cake until it wont absorb any more. You may have 1/3 to 1/4 left over. That''s okay.
5. Combine the whipped cream and sugar, spread over soaked cake. Refrigerate cake until serving, Pour leftover milk mixture onto plates and swirl in jam if desired, before setting cake on the plates.

 

[FrekeChild]

Ok. So Nutella cake, the Ispahan(cake version), and now the tres leches cake are on my list to make.

Should I add a dulce de tres leches to that?

I'm looking forward to hearing how it comes out erica!

 

[laine]

Hmm, Erica''s recipe has the cake from scratch, which is better than my recipe, but doesn''t have you cook the sauce or add the jam filling. Is there a reason to cook the sauce? Freke, help us out here...

 

[FrekeChild]

Date: 6/8/2008 9:45:51 PM
Author: laine
Hmm, Erica''s recipe has the cake from scratch, which is better than my recipe, but doesn''t have you cook the sauce or add the jam filling. Is there a reason to cook the sauce? Freke, help us out here...

Well the only 2 reasons I can think of to cook the milks would be to help emulsify the milks and to have a little bit of moisture cooked out-making it richer, sweeter and yummier. As for the jam-thats just a flavor thing-You could leave it out or keep it in. I''ll go look to see if any of my books have a recipe in there. (This might take me a while, I have a lot of books...)

 

[miraclesrule]

Oh man o man, I had one of these cakes at my friends birthday last year.

I''m so glad I don''t do that often, because they are very addicting.

 

[Lexie]

I had a slice of tres leches for dessert tonight, and it was absolutely delicious

If any of y''all are ever in Houston, be sure to go to Churrasco''s for some

 

[ericad]

Ok, so I made it. Hmmmmm. Was it good? Good enough for me to know it's a delicious type of cake and I need to keep trying different recipes. Too egg heavy - tastes ok but bordering on omlette-ish. The cake turned out bottom heavy - light and fluffy on top, but too dense on the bottom - probably all that egg. But the milks! OMG, DELICIOUS! I spread some of the milk mixture on each plate, added a dollop or syrup (red currant jam microwaved until runny), put a piece of cake on top, then surrounded it with sliced fresh fruit (we used mango and cantaloupe cuz that's what I had around, but fresh berries would have been TDF!) I also put very little sugar into the whipped cream topping, because the cake and milks are already very sweet, and we don't tend to like thinks that are too super sugary. The amount of sweetness was just right.

I might try this recipe again with some tweaks - reduce by 1 or 2 eggs. We also ate it pretty much right after making it. I've heard this type of cake is better after overnight refrigeration - so I'll let you know if it's better tomorrow.

I found this recipe online too. Will try it next. It's very similar, but slightly different.

(apologize - it's long!)

Tres Leches Cake (Three-Milks Cake) has become almost as popular as tiramisu was during the 1990s when Tom Hanks' character in "Sleepless in Seattle" was told by his best friend that he better know about tiramisu if he wanted to start dating again. Hanks' comical retort was slightly X-rated, so it won't be mentioned here.

Although this popular cake has yet to reach the rarefied status of a spicy quote in a movie, it is turning up on non-Latino restaurant menus and appears frequently in food magazines and all over the Internet.

Tres Leches Cake recipes began appearing about 20 years. Several Latin American countries besides Mexico have claimed to invent it, so it seems to be like a child with too many fathers. Part of the legend is that the cake was invented by a condensed milk company to get people to use more canned milk, which Latin American cooks love to do anyway.

Through the years I have tried and discarded a half-dozen recipes until I ate the most ethereal Tres Leches Cake at Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen in St. Helena (then known as Miramonte). The chef, Pablo Jacinto, shared his recipe - after I begged a little.

The difference in Pablo's cake - a slightly different version of which appears in "Big Small Plates," by Cindy Pawlcyn, Pablo Jacinto and Erasto Jacinto (Ten Speed Press, 2006) - is that he uses a very light sponge cake.

The crucial step is folding in a meringue. There is no butter in the cake, because butter causes heaviness after soaking. Pablo's original recipe calls for the cake to be served on a berry sauce, which helps cut the richness of all the soaking milks.

While testing this cake, I ran out of regular whipping cream and had to add a half cup crema Mexicana (see Note in the recipe). We liked it even more, so I re-named it Pastel de Cuatro Leches (Four-Milks Cake).

I like to make this more of a summer cake by placing individual pieces on the berry sauce and scattering raspberries and blackberries around the edges.

This rich cake is perfect to serve following a barbecue of meats, corn on the cob and salad.
Pastel de Cuatro Leches (Four-Milks Cake)

Serves 10

While testing this cake I ran out of regular whipping cream and had to add a 1/2 cup crema Mexicana (the fourth milk) and we liked it even more. Plan enough time to make this cake; after baking, you will need to let the milk topping soak in for at least 3 hours before icing it.

SPONGE CAKE

Baking spray

2 1/2 cups all-purpose bleached flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

8 eggs, separated

2 cups extra-fine sugar, such as Baker's

1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon fresh squeezed lime juice

2 teaspoons vanilla

2/3 cup whole milk, room temperature


FOUR MILK TOPPING

1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk

1 can (14 ounces) condensed milk

8 ounces heavy cream

1/2 cup crema Mexicana (see Note), or substitute heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla


BERRY SAUCE

1 (16 ounces) package frozen blackberries, thawed

1/4 cup sugar


WHIPPED CREAM ICING

8 ounces heavy whipping cream

1 tablespoon powdered sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla


GARNISH

1 cup fresh raspberries

1 cup fresh blackberries


For the cake: Preheat oven to 350°. Mist a 9 x 13-inch baking pan (I use a glass pan) with baking spray. Line bottom with parchment and mist.

Sift flour, baking powder and salt together. Set aside.

In a large bowl of a standing mixer, or with a hand-held mixer, whip egg whites on medium speed to soft peaks. Slowly add the sugar; raise speed to high and continue whipping to stiff peaks.

Reduce speed to low, and beat in yolks one by one. Beat in the lime juice and vanilla.

Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk, in two or three additions, ending with the flour. Stop the mixer when all the flour is just in. Use a spatula to quickly and gently finish folding in all the flour until it is just moistened and there are no dry spots. The batter will be thick and slightly lumpy.

Pour into the prepared baking dish. Tap on counter to release air bubbles. Bake for 30-35 minutes (exact time will depend on whether your pan is metal or glass), or until cake is golden and center springs back when touched.

For the topping: While cake is baking, whisk together evaporated milk, condensed milk, heavy cream, crema Mexicana and vanilla.

Cool cake on long baking rack for 10 minutes and then release along the sides with a thin knife (I use an old steak knife). Place rack on top of dish and turn over to release. Allow cake to cool upside down for another 20-30 minutes.

Next turn cake right-side up onto a long, serving dish with a rim to catch the excess milk topping. Poke holes in the cake with a steak knife or skewer. Pour 1 cup of the milk topping over entire top of cake. Wait until it soaks in and then repeat. When the topping is absorbed, pour over another cup of topping.

You can keep pouring on the milk cup by cup until all of it is used up, or you can save 1/2 cup to serve along with the cake as a side since people seem to like it so much they want to lick their plates.

Cover the cake and plate well with plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 3 hours, or overnight.

For the sauce: Meanwhile, puree thawed blackberries in food processor with the sugar. Pour into a wire strainer and tap edge so puree goes through leaving behind the seeds. Place sauce in covered container until ready to serve the cake.

For the icing: An hour before serving cake, whip the cream, powdered sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form. Spread smoothly over the top of the cake. Put cake back in the refrigerator until serving time. Cut cake in 4-inch squares and place each on a pool of berry sauce. Scatter raspberries and blackberries around the edge of plate and serve with any reserved milk topping.

Note: Crema Mexicana is close to the French creme fraiche but not as rich. Crema is richer and nuttier than American sour cream and I do not find that they are interchangeable. I prefer the Cacique brand, available in many well-stocked supermarkets or at Latino grocers.

Per serving: 490 calories, 10 g protein, 71 g carbohydrate, 19 g fat (11 g saturated), 167 mg cholesterol, 245 mg sodium, 3 g fiber.

Jacqueline Higuera McMahan, whose family lived on one of the last Spanish land-grant ranchos in the Bay Area, has lived in Mexico and now resides in Southern California.

 

[FrekeChild]

I found two more recipes. But they are in books so I''ll have to post them tomorrow after class because I have to get ready for school tonight.
If you have the books, you could look them up anyway: "The Joy Of Cooking" and "The Gourmet Cookbook" (the Gourmet magazine one)
The JOC one is normal and the GC one is coconut flavored with rum, strawberries and kiwi. One thing I found that was interesting is that the JOC one said that they were originally covered in meringue instead of whipped cream...I want to try them...I need to open a bakery just so I don''t have the cakes sitting around my house tempting me to eat them!

Erica-Do you have pics?

 

[iheartscience]

Erica-mind sending a piece my way? It sounds amazing!

I''m very impressed you just busted out and made a cake from scratch! I don''t cook and I am always impressed when someone makes something so complicated!

 

[iheartscience]

Oh, and a fun fact about the place I got my delish tres leche cake from is that the owner's mother (she's pretty old, too!) is the one who makes the cakes. So if you want to order a whole cake you have to call "Mami or Papi," and if they're on vacation or going out of town the place doesn't have the cake at all! Needless to say, those are depressing times if I really want a piece!

 

[ericad]

Date: 6/8/2008 11:56:22 PM
Author: thing2of2
I''m very impressed you just busted out and made a cake from scratch! I don''t cook and I am always impressed when someone makes something so complicated!

LOL, well, Sundays are "DD & Mommy" days and we often bake cookies, cakes, etc. The kitchenaid did all the work

Funny thing is, DD is not a dessert girl at all. She ate the mango off the plate, had a couple fingerfulls of whipped cream and that''s it. But my MIL is visiting from France and, since I''m a miserable failure at french cuisine, I thought I''d throw something else at her and she actually liked it!

I''m much better at desserts than I am at...well, FOOD. Thank goodness for dinosaur shaped chicken nuggets and quesadillas...

 

[FrekeChild]

(From "The Joy of Cooking" -link)
Latin Sponge cake with three milks (tres leches)

This Latin American dessert is a simple spnge cake drenched with a sweet mixture of three types of milk and cream, which forms a rich interior sauce. It is traditionally topped with a sweet soft meringue; replace the meringue with whipped cream if you prefer.
Have all ingredients at room temperature, 68* to 70*F. Preheat the oven to 350*F (325* if the baking pan is glass). Grease one 9 x 9-inch pan or one 11 x 7-inch pan.

Sift together:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder

In a large bowl, beat on medium speed until soft peaks form:
3 large egg whites
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar (optional)

Gradually add, beating on high speed:
1 cup sugar

Beat in 1 at a time:
3 large egg yolks

Add one-quarter of the flour mixture at a time, beating on low speed or stirring with a rubber spatula just until incorporated and scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add and beat just until the mixture is smooth and evenly mixed.:
1/4 cup milk

Scrape the batter into the pan and spread evenly. Bake until the top springs back when lightly pressed and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Meanwhile combine:
1 cup heavy cream
one 12-oz can evaporated milk
one 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk

Leaving the cake in the pan, prick it with a toothpick at 1 inch intervals. Pour the milk mixture slowly over the cake, including the corners and the edges. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving or overnight.
To make the meringue topping, combine in a 2.5 quart heatproof bowl (preferably stainless steel):
2/3 cup light corn syrup
2 large egg whites

Bring about 1 inch of water to a gentle simmer in a wide deep skillet. Set the bowl of egg whites directly in the hot water. Immediately begin beating on low speed, moving the mixer all around the bowl until the mixture reaches 140*F. If you must stop beating for any reason, remove the bowl from the hot water until you can resume, to prevent the egg whites from scrambling. Beat on high speed for 5 minutes; the mixture will be billowy and hold a stiff shape. Remove the bowl from the skillet and beat for 2 to 3 more minutes until the meringue is cool. To serve, leave the cake in the pan or or slide a slim knife around the cake to detach it from the pan. Invert the cake onto a large shallow serving platter with enough of a rim to hold the excess milk that will gradually collect around the cake like a sauce. Spread or pipe the meringue topping over the cake. Cut into squares to serve.


(From "The Gourmet Cookbook") link
Three-Milk Cake with Coconut and Fresh Fruit
"Pastel de Thres Leches con Coco"
serves 6
Active time: 1 hour start to finish: 5 hours (includes chilling)
The simple, light sponge cake technically called a genoise is made for soaking up delectable syrups. In this Latino classic, it''s saturated with one made of "three milks"-sweetened condensed milk, whole milk and heavy cream-after baking. You could even argue that this is a cuatro leches, because coconut milk flavored with rum has been added to the mix, upping the wow factor. This recipe is adapted from the one served at Chicago''s Adobo Grill.

For cake
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup AP flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 large eggs
1/2 cup sugar

For milk syrup
1 (14oz) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup well stirred canned unsweetened coconut milk
1/3 cup light rum

Accompaniments: unsweetened whipped cream, chopped strawberries and kiwi, and toasted coconut
Special equipment: 2 8-inch square baking pans

Make the cake: Put a rack in the middle of oven and prehead oven to 350*F. Butter one baking pan and line bottom with a square of parchment or wax paper. (***note from Liz-DO NOT USE WAX PAPER IN THIS APPLICATION-THE WAX WILL MELT INTO THE CAKE-and who wants to eat waxed cake?) Butter paper and dust with flour, knocking out excess.
Cook butter in a small saucepan over moderate heat, swirling pan occasionally, until golden brown, 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a heatproof bowl and let cool, then stir in vanilla.
Sift together flour, cornstarch, and salt into another bowl and then sift again.
Combine eggs and sugar in a mixer bowl or other large metal bowl set over saucepan of simmering water (do not let bowl touch water) and heat whisking constantly until lukewarm. Remove bowl from pan and beat eggs, with an electric mixer at high speed until thick, pale, and tripled in volume, about 6 minutes in a stand mixer or about 10 minutes with a handheld mixer. Sift half of flour mixture over eggs and fold in gently but thoroughly, then fold in remaining flour. Transfer 1/3 cup batter and fold butter into it until incorporated, then gently but thoroughly fold butter mixture into remaining batter.
Spread batter evenly in prepared pan. Bake until cake is springy to the touch and top is golden, 15-17 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the milk syrup:
Whisk together all ingredients in a large glass measuring cup or bowl with a spout until combined. Transfer 1/3 cup syrup to a small bowl and reserve, refrigerated. for garnish.
Cool cake in pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then prick all over with a skewer or wooden pick. Run a knife around edges of pan, then invert second baking pan over cake and slip cake into it. Remove paper and prick cake all over with skewer again.
Pour milk syrup over cake and gently press with a spatula to help saturate it. Refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap, until most of the syrup has been absorbed, at least 4 hours.
Cut cake into 6 rectangles and transfer with spatula to plates. Drizzle the reserved chilled syrup around it. Top with whipped cream and coconut and sprinkle top and plate with fruit.

Notes: the syrup soaked cake can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.

(***I''m kind of tired from typing everything, but if you have any questions, please ask. Also I don''t know whats up with the cornstarch in the second cake-I''ve never used it in a cake.)