Tres Leches Cake

Tres leches cake is a creamy, rich treat that pairs well with any Mexican themed dinner like a homemade Chipotle burrito, quinoa burrito bowl, or stacked enchiladas. This cake can be prepared a day or two in advance and allowed to chill in the fridge. This gives the spongy cake time to absorb the tres leches mixture which improves with a little time. Serve with whipped cream frosting and top with maraschino cherries.

Desserts

Prep: 40 min
Chill: 30 min
Cook: 40 min
Total: 1 hour 50 min
Serves 12 to 16

Preheat oven to 350°F.
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
Grease a 9x13 baking pan with butter and lightly sprinkle with flour, discarding any excess flour.
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
5 eggs
Separate egg yolks and egg whites into two bowls.
reserved egg yolks
¾ cup sugar
Using an electric hand mixer, beat egg yolks with sugar on high until the mixture becomes a light, pale yellow.
⅓ cup milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Add milk and vanilla extract to sugar-egg mixture and beat on low to combine.
Pour egg-milk mixture into bowl with flour. Gently stir with a spatula until just combined.
reserved egg whites
Rinse the beaters on the electric hand mixer and then beat egg whites on high until soft peaks form.
¼ cup sugar
While hand mixer is on high, slowly add sugar to egg whites and beat until egg whites are stiff but not dry.
Gently fold egg whites into batter until just combined.
Pour batter into prepared cake pan and spread out with a spatula.
Bake at 350°F until cake is a dark, golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes.
Remove cake from oven and let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto a wire rack and let cool completely, about 2 hours.
Once cake has cooled completely, poke the surface of the cake with fork every three to four inches. Transfer cake to a rimmed serving platter or back into the baking dish. (You need something with sides that will prevent the liquid added in the next step from spilling everywhere.)
14 ounce can evaporated milk
12 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
¼ cup heavy cream
Combine evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy cream in a medium bowl. Slowly and evenly pour the three kinds of milk over the cake.
Allow the cake to soak in the milk mixture for 30 minutes. If desired, you can cover the cake with aluminum foil and store it in the refrigerator for up to two days before serving. (This is a cake that improves with a little age.)
1 pint heavy cream
6 tablespoons sugar
Using an electric hand mixer, whip heavy cream and sugar together until cream is thick and becomes spreadable. Spread over top of cake.
maraschino cherries
Slice and server with maraschino cherries.