Tres Leches Cake
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My Tres Leches Cake is designed to be soft, perfectly moist, and NOT soggy! It’s made with a homemade vanilla cake soaked in three milks and topped with whipped cream. You’ll be amazed at how incredible this tastes! Recipe includes a how-to video.
The Best Tres Leches Cake Recipe
Tres leches cake or “Three Milks” cake should be soft, moist, and super flavorful. My recipe checks every box, with a fluffy vanilla sponge cake soaked in three different types of milk and topped with whipped cream. With all that liquid, it’s easy to assume this cake would be soggy–but don’t worry, my recipe has been tested and perfected to be perfectly balanced and NOT soggy!
This is a cake that took me a long time to get just right. Because we’ll be drenching it with a mixture of milks, the base of this cake is critical (and is what took me the longest to perfect).
It needs to be light and airy, but sturdy enough that it doesn’t become a soupy mess. Pound cake is too dense, and classic vanilla cake disintegrates. Ultimately, a variation of my grandmother’s hot milk cake did the trick, and while the cake ingredients are almost identical, you’ll notice the technique is quite different (as is the resulting cake!). You’re going to love it!
What You Need
Here are the key ingredients in my recipe. Some of them may surprise you!
- Eggs. We’ll be using both the egg whites and yolks, but you’ll need to separate them first. Whipping the egg whites adds airiness to the cake without making it so delicate that it dissolves from the moisture of our three milks.
- Butter. Many tres leches cakes do not use butter, but after a lot of testing I’m firmly standing by this version. It produces a light but wonderfully flavorful cake that’s spongy, but sturdy enough to absorb all of the milk.
- Flour. I use all-purpose flour. Cake flour could be substituted if done properly.
- Milks. Precisely three of them. We’ll be using condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream along with just a drop of vanilla extract for our three milks. We’ll also need whole milk for the cake itself.
- Heavy cream. Some recipes use a third milk for the tres leches mixture, but I actually prefer heavy cream. It creates a perfect consistency and doesn’t make the cake soggy or soupy.
SAM’S TIP: I like to top off my cake with a sprinkle of cinnamon (freshly ground, if you have it!), but this is optional.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make It
- Whip the egg whites and 1 cup of sugar to stiff peaks, then set this aside.
- Beat together the butter and remaining 1 cup of sugar until creamy, then stir in the egg yolks and vanilla extract.
- Whisk together dry ingredients, then alternate stirring the whole milk and dry ingredients into your into egg yolk mixture.
- Gently fold in egg whites, then pour into a prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes.
- Let the cake cool for an hour, poke holes all over, and slowly drizzle with the three milks mixture.
- Cover and chill for a few hours or overnight before frosting with whipped cream and serving.
SAM’S TIP: If you’ve never whipped egg whites to stiff peaks before, it simply means that the egg whites don’t fold over or fall back into themselves when you pull your whisk straight out of the mixture. If you’ve made my meringues or white cake you’ve done this before! For a visual, check out my video below.
With most of my cakes I encourage you to play around with different frostings on top, but not so with today’s recipe. You need something light that pairs well with the milks-drenched cake and the whipped cream frosting is a classic for a reason!
Frequently Asked Questions
The true origins of this cake are actually widely disputed. Many Latin American countries have been named as possible points of origin, and some sources even cite Nestle as perpetuating this milk-heavy recipe as a way to sell more of their condensed and evaporated milk (a delicious marketing ploy, if you ask me).
Kind of. I don’t recommend freezing the cake after you’ve soaked it in the milk mixture. However, if you’d like to make this cake in advance you can bake the cake, cool it completely, and then tightly wrap it and freeze as you would any other cake.
Several hours to 1 day before you are ready to serve, thaw the cake and then follow the instructions in the recipe for drenching with milk and topping with whipped cream.
Traditionally this cake is made with evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and whole milk. However, I found that using whole milk tends to make the cake a bit more soggy than is desirable, so for my tres leches cake recipe I use heavy cream instead.
This cake would be a great dessert after enjoying some taco salad or chips and queso!
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Tres Leches Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 5 large eggs, whites and yolks separated
- ½ cup (113 g) butter, softened
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar, divided
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (235 ml) milk
LECHES TOPPING
- 14 oz (397 g) sweetened condensed milk
- 12 oz (340 g) evaporated milk
- ½ cup (118 ml) heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
WHIPPED CREAM
- 1 ½ cups (355 ml) heavy cream
- ½ cup (65 g) powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Ground cinnamon for sprinkling, optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and spray a 9×13 glass baking dish with baking spray. Set aside.
- Place egg whites in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer and use an electric mixer or your stand mixer’s whisk attachment to beat until foamy. Gradually increase mixer speed to medium-high and add just 1 cup (200g) of sugar, adding about 2 Tablespoons at a time and allowing about 10 seconds after each addition. Increase mixer speed to high and beat until egg white mixture is thick and glossy and you achieve stiff peaks¹ (much like you are making a meringue).5 large eggs
- If you used a stand mixer, scoop egg whites into a separate clean bowl and set aside and carry on using the same bowl for the next step (no need to clean the bowl). If you used an electric hand mixer, just grab a new bowl at this point.
- Place softened butter and remaining 1 cup (200g) of sugar in bowl. Beat until creamy and well-combined.½ cup (113 g) butter
- Add egg yolks, one at a time, stirring after each addition.
- Stir in vanilla extract.1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.2 cups (250 g) all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt
- Using a spatula and stirring by hand, alternate adding milk and flour mixture to your egg yolk mixture (I usually do this in about 4 parts, about ¼ cup of the milk at a time and ¼ of the flour mixture at a time).1 cup (235 ml) milk
- Once milk and flour have been stirred into egg yolk mixture, grab your egg white meringue from earlier and use a spatula to gently fold meringue into batter. Make sure it is completely combined and no white spots of egg remain, but use a gentle hand to not deflate the egg whites or over-mix the batter or you'll have a dense cake.
- Spread batter evenly into prepared 9×13 pan and transfer to 350F (175C) oven and bake for 35-40 minutes.
- Once cake has finished baking, allow to cool for about 30-60 minutes.
LECHES TOPPING
- Once cake has cooled (do not invert it, leave it in the cake pan), prepare topping by whisking together condensed milk, evaporated milk, heavy cream, and vanilla extract.14 oz (397 g) sweetened condensed milk, 12 oz (340 g) evaporated milk, ½ cup (118 ml) heavy cream, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Use a large fork or a wooden skewer to poke holes all over the cake (poke down to the bottom of the cake pan). Pour milk mixture slowly and evenly over cake. Cover and transfer cake to refrigerator and allow to chill for at least several hours or overnight.
- Once ready to serve, prepare whipped cream:
WHIPPED CREAM
- Combine heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla extract in a large bowl and use an electric mixer to beat until thickened and you achieve stiff peaks and a Cool Whip consistency.1 ½ cups (355 ml) heavy cream, ½ cup (65 g) powdered sugar, ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Spread whipped cream over tres leches cake and sprinkle with ground cinnamon, if desired.Ground cinnamon for sprinkling
- Slice and serve! Enjoy!
Notes
¹Stiff Peaks
Stiff peaks simply means that if you lift the beater straight out of the batter, the peak that forms will not recede back or melt back into itself. It should hold a tall, stiff peak, and if you turn the beater upside down the peak that has formed on the end of it should hold its shape as well. See photo in post or video for visual!How to Store
Store Tres Leches cake covered in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this? Leave a comment below!
Related Recipes
Recipe originally published September 2019, it has been updated to include more information but the recipe is unchanged.
Absolutely delicious! I will definitely be making this again! I love the way you put the ingredients in the step-by-step instructions, I wish every recipe did that!🩷
I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake, Samantha! 🙂
It came out good. It definetly needed one whole hour to bake , I looked at 40 minutes which is what the recipe said and still was very wiggly. For the whipped cream topping I ended up making another cup of heavy cream to have more to decor.
I made this to take to school for a project and it turned out great! Perfectly moist, but not soggy. The homemade whipped cream is truly the icing on the cake (no pun intended 😂). My Mexican classmate told me it was on par with his mom’s. Delicious! Will be making again!
Love your website, enthusiasm, and recipes. The videos are especially helpful even as a former baker it’s easier to see. This recipe is currently in the oven and I’m so excited to see how it turns out since so far it’s been a better base for tres leches than ones I’ve tried in the past.
I wanted to share a tip that we did in kitchens that would help. In your video you show how you mix all egg whites with the cake batter resulting in bubbles of egg whites. Oftentimes in professional settings we would temper any sort of whipped egg white into the batter you’re about to fold into. So you fold in some egg white to batter and then batter into egg whites. Then you can gently fold both allowing you to keep the air volume and have it be smooth.
SAM THIS IS EXCELLENT. I’m from Los Angeles and I’ve had SO MANY Tres Leches cakes and I believe they have delicious Mexican food there. I can say that your recipe is THE BEST. The best ratios, not soggy. You are really talented and I wish I was as smart as you and I could develop my own recipes like you do.
You’ve got a gift, take care.
Thank you so much, Irine! I’m so glad you enjoyed the cake so much! 🙂
EXCELLENT RECIPE! I REVIEWED EVERYTHING INCLUDING THE VIDEO.
Thanks so much for giving it a try, Zaida! We appreciate your review. Enjoy 😊
WOO-HOO!!! I made your Tres Leches Cake and it was AWESOME! Never knew whipped cream was so easy to make!! 2 thumbs up 👍 👍
Hi sam, can I turn the recipe into a biscoff milkcake by adding melted biscoff spread in the three milk mixture?
Hi Tina! Unfortunately without having tried it I can’t say for sure how that would work.
Fabulous cake, thank you for the recipe! I love the effect the whipped egg whites has on the cake, absolute game changer! I wonder if I could follow this strategy with a chocolate cake of sorts? Any advice would be greatly appreciated, and again thanks for the delicious treat!
Hi Abbey! Unfortunately I have not played with making it chocolate so I can’t say for sure how to do it, but it is something I plan on working on. 🙂
Absolutely delicious!! Really good recipe. Not too soggy, not too sweet-just perfect! Thank you for sharing 🩷
Hi! The ingredients don’t specify unsalted vs salted butter. I assume since you are adding salt, you use unsalted butter?
I’m so sorry for the confusion, Katherine! You will want to use unsalted butter here. I will make sure to update this. 🙂
Hi hunny 🙂 I was wondering if you could make these into cupcakes? Thank-you so much!
Hi Lauren! It could get pretty messy and complicated to make this recipe as cupcakes. You’ll have to be a bit careful and definitely use foil and not paper liners, which would absorb the three milks. We hope that helps!
So delicious! Thank you fir sharing! You pronounced Tres Leches perfectly well.
Hi ☺️
I’m going to be making this recipe for my brother’s birthday in a few days as it’s his absolute favorite and I was wondering if I can put the whip cream on the cake a few hours before serving instead of right before serving since I won’t really have time to do so?
Hi Gina! That will be just fine. We hope your brother loves the cake 🥳
This was the first time making a tres leches cake. When assembled, it looked and tasted just wonderful like the cake I’ve had at our local Mexican restaurant. I did have an issues with the egg whites not wanting to come to a soft peak after quite a while of mixing. So I added 1/4 t. Cream of Tarter and after a few more minutes with my electric mixer, it started to firm up.. I made strawberry and blueberry sauces to top the cake along with fresh fruit. Will definitely be making it again.
We’re so glad you enjoyed it, Carrie! The egg whites can be tricky sometimes; always make sure you use completely clean and grease free bowls and utensils, and don’t let any yolk (not even a drop) touch them.
So good and moist!!
We’re so glad you liked it! Thanks for the review 🥰
Hey there! I’m trying to make vintage heart cake for my best friend’s birthday using this recipe! If I soak the cake in the cake pan itself and take the cake out to decorate, will the cake break? Is it delicate or strong enough so that I may take the cake out of the pan, layer, and decorate it?
Hi Jessica! This is a pretty delicate cake after it has been soaked so I’d be worried it wouldn’t hold up if removed from a pan. 🙁
I made this as a surprise dessert for my wife and added a bit of gold rum to the Leches. At the first bite, she said that it reminded her of the Tres Leches we had a couple of years ago when we were on a alltime favorite Valentine’s dinner we had at a Mexican restaurant that closed down last year. We miss that restaurant and that night, but this can help us to relive a portion of that memory. Thank you for sharing this recipe with us.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Jacen! Thank you for the feedback using the rum. It sounds delicious! I love being able to bring back some fond memories. 🙂
Hi Jacen, how much rum did you add? and you said gold so Bacardi gold or similar? thanks
Sorry. I didn’t see this reply until today. we used Mr. Boston gold rum, but any gold rum should do. I added 2 shots into the full liquid, or about half a cup.
I’d like to know about the rum too!
I added about a half cup of gold rum. It did add extra liquid, but we used the extra soaking liquid for a tres leches cocktail on the side and for a coffee creamer. The rum shines through so well with every bite, so keep that in mind when you cut the slices.
Two shots are equivalent to an entire 1/2 cup, lol. I’d say two of the largest shots ever poured, maybe, LoL. My Father’s Celebration of Life is coming up in a few weeks, where we will be holding it at my family house/parents house on our decking and around the pool. Extremely casual, like Southern California casual.. Shorts and flip flops are as far as dress code goes. I thought a tres Le he cake would go absolutely perfect for the party, since we will be having our favorite taco man catering the party.. Reading your comment was a must do additions, since there will be mainly just adults attending and the very small number of little ones can freely eat the half sheet cake that was ordered from Costco, since it was my Father’s favorite cake by a long mile. Thanks for the comment, as well as the addition of the special adult juice you added. Can not wait to make it and get approximately 125 different opinions on how good or not so pleasantly tasting the cake actually was. I can’t imagine a little bit of gold adult juice would ever hurt any recipe or person it is being served to..
Hiii!
I haven’t tried this recipe yet, but I’m sure it’ll be delicious! Would substituting the sugar with stevia or monk fruit sweetener work? My father in law is diabetic so I was hoping to make it with substitutions. Any advice?
Hi Julia! Unfortunately I haven’t tried a sugar substitute so I can’t say for sure how it would turn out. Please let me know how it goes if you do try it. 🙂
I haven’t made this yet but am soooo impressed and thrilled by your sensible inclusion of the ingredients at the bottom of each step. It was a joy to read your recipe and not have to go back to the beginning to find the increments of the ingredients. I consider you absolutely brilliant and 100% sensible. Your new fan.