Try The Tres Leches: The Desserts That's Enjoying Popularity

Three types of milk—whole, condensed, and evaporated—are spread over a sponge cake to create the rich, luscious treat known as tres leches cake. The cake's history is a little unclear, although most accounts place it in Nicaragua. Nevertheless, it is widely consumed across Central America, the US, and Europe, where it is a mainstay at many festivals and events. It is thought that in order to encourage the usage of the product and increase milk sales for the milk firms, the original recipe was initially put on milk cans in Latin America.

The result of this soaking procedure is a stunning cake with a flavor that is rich and deep, almost luxurious. Tres Leches is definitely a dessert delicacy unique to Latin American cuisine, despite its resemblance to the Italian treat tiramisu.

History Of Tres Leches

The tres leches cake's exact forebears are the soaked cakes and sponges that were popular in 19th-century Mexico. The tradition of soaking cakes in milk originated in the Mexican state of Tabasco. There was a cake called "Torta de Leche" that was cooked with cake batter and scalded milk in a pan.

This yielded a lovely cake with a wonderfully milky taste. In the late 1800s, the states of Oaxaca and Sinaloa gave rise to similar recipes. Soaking pastries like as "Ante de Suecas" and "Sopa Borracha" were popular in southern Mexico.

This tradition traveled to Nicaragua, a neighboring country, in the early 1900s. The upper strata of Nicaraguan society at the time lived in imported luxury, and the country was highly stratified. Recipes that made use of the 1853 discovery of sweetened condensed milk became well-known.

Nonetheless, most Nicaraguans could not afford condensed milk. This changed in the 1930s when the governments of the United States and Nicaragua collaborated to assist the dairy industry. Condensed milk became more affordable and more readily available.

By the mid-1900s, the cake was becoming more and more popular in Nicaragua. Many Nicaraguan refugees who arrived in Miami during the political unrest of the 1970s introduced the tres leches cake custom, establishing it as a national treat. This helped make the dish known to a global audience.

Tres Leches Recipe

Here's how you can prepare tres leches cake at home:

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 120 gm all-purpose flour
• 7 gm baking powder
• 5 gm salt
• 5 large eggs, separated
• 200 gm sugar (divided into 2 halves)
• 80 ml whole milk
• 5 ml vanilla extract

For The Milk Mixture:

• 355 ml evaporated milk
• 415 ml sweetened condensed milk
• 60 ml whole milk or heavy cream

For The Whipped Cream Topping:

• 250 ml heavy cream
• 35 gm sugar
• 5 ml vanilla extract

Directions:

For The Cake:

• Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit (175° Celsius). Coat a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with oil and flour.
• Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
• Place the yolks and whites of the eggs into two separate dishes.
• Beat the yolks until they are light and creamy after adding half the sugar. Add the milk and vanilla essence and stir.
• Till just incorporated, gradually fold the flour mixture into the egg yolk mixture.
• Beat the egg whites on high speed in a clean bowl until soft peaks form. Add the remaining half of sugar gradually while beating until stiff peaks form.
• Whisk the egg whites until stiff peaks form and mix into the batter. Take care not to overmix in order to maintain a light batter.
• After filling the baking dish, level the top with the batter. When a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, bake for 25 to 30 minutes.
• Give the cake 30 minutes to cool in the pan. Next, use a fork or skewer to make holes all over the top so that the milk mixture may seep in.

Milk Mixture:

• Mix the whole milk or heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, and evaporated milk in a bowl.
• Make sure the milk mixture seeps into the holes in the cake by slowly pouring it over it. To allow the cake to properly absorb the milk, refrigerate it for at least one hour, but ideally overnight.

Whipped Cream Topping:

• Beat the heavy cream, sugar, and vanilla extract together in a large bowl until stiff peaks form.
• Evenly cover the top of the moistened cake with whipped cream.
• Cut into slices and serve, adding some cinnamon or fresh fruit, such as strawberries, as a garnish.