Once upon a time (about 3 years ago) in a land far, far away (New York) my brother in law, The History Teacher, decided he would come visit us.
Now, knowing that I married into an Hispanic family, and knowing the good things (fajitas and margaritas) and the bad things (menudo) that come with this culture, I decided to try to surprise him by making a Tres Leches Cake. I've never been a fan of the cake myself, but I knew he loved it. I had just watched Alton Brown make one on the Food Network channel and I thought I would try out his recipe. Let me tell you, the whole thing ended in utter disappointment. The cake wasn't spongy and the milk did NOT absorb. I was sad and so was he.
Fast forward several years later and I find myself living in Texas again. I have become a bit more experienced with baking and cooking and I discover The Pioneer Woman website. I decide that I need to make her Tres Leches Cake recipe. I mean, how can I go wrong right?? She has picture instructions!!! Well, we all know how well I do with instructions.
Either way, I forged ahead. Determined to conquer the Tres Leches Cake (and the wet cake in general) and I'm pleased to say that it wasn't a COMPLETE failure. Granted, it wasn't the best, but it wasn't a complete failure either. The milk didn't completely soak into the sides and the whipped topping was a bit droopy (and I didn't add the cherries because YUCK!) but I did it...almost.
The Hubble, who is also a big fan of Tres Leches Cake, said the parts that were Tres Leches were actually quite tasty. I don't know if I will try wet cakes again. I think they hate me. And that's the end.
Tres Leches Cake
From The Pioneer Woman
Ingredients:
- 1 cup All-purpose Flour
- 1-½ teaspoon Baking Powder
- ¼ teaspoons Salt
- 5 whole Eggs
- 1 cup Sugar, Divided
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla
- ⅓ cups Milk
- 1 can Evaporated Milk
- 1 can Sweetened, Condensed Milk
- ¼ cups Heavy Cream
- _____
- FOR THE ICING:
- 1 pint Heavy Cream, For Whipping
- 3 Tablespoons Sugar
Preparation Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 inch pan liberally until coated.
- Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Separate eggs.
- Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar on high speed until yolks are pale yellow. Stir in milk and vanilla. Pour egg yolk mixture over the flour mixture and stir very gently until combined.
- Beat egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form. With the mixer on, pour in remaining 1/4 cup sugar and beat until egg whites are stiff but not dry.
- Fold egg white mixture into the batter very gently until just combined. Pour into prepared pan and spread to even out the surface.
- Bake for 35 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn cake out onto a rimmed platter and allow to cool.
- Combine condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream in a small pitcher. When cake is cool, pierce the surface with a fork several times. Slowly drizzle all but about 1 cup of the milk mixture—try to get as much around the edges of the cake as you can.
- Allow the cake to absorb the milk mixture for 30 minutes. To ice the cake, whip 1 pint heavy cream with 3 tablespoons of sugar until thick and spreadable.
- Spread over the surface of the cake. Decorate cake with whole or chopped maraschino cherries. Cut into squares and serve.
