Recipe: Tres Leche Cake (Three Milks Cake)

Hi Caroline,

Here is one version for you to try - there are more in our archives if you'd like to do a message board search for them...

Tres Leche Cake (Three Milks Cake)
rec.food.recipes/Brandi Clark (1999)

This is really a Nicaraguan dessert, but it is served in just about every Cuban restaurant in Miami. It is one of the most delicious cakes ever invented.

1 1/2 cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup plus 1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
5 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
11/3 cups of milk
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 cup evaporated milk
1 tablespoon light rum
1 cup heavy cream.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift together the cake flour and baking powder.

In a large mixing bowl, cream the 1 cup sugar and the butter with an electric mixer until well blended. Add the eggs and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, and beat until foamy. With a rubber spatula, gently fold in the flour mixture in increments, alternating with 1/3 cup milk, until the batter is smooth.

Pour cake batter into a lightly greased cake pan or baking dish, 7 by 11 by 2 inches, and bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top springs back when pressed. Allow cake to cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes, then invert onto a serving platter. Pierce the cake with a fork in many places, and allow it to cool completely.

In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the condensed milk, evaporated milk, 1 cup milk and rum until well blended. Pour syrup evenly over the cake a little at a time, until it is saturated; you may not need the entire amount.

Refrigerate, covered in plastic wrap, for at least 3 hours.

In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer, whisk the heavy cream until it begins to thicken. Add 1 teaspoon sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, and continue whisking until stiff peaks form. Using a spatula, spread the cream over the top and sides of the cake. Serve, cut into squares.

Happy Baking,

Betsy
www.recipelink.com