If you’re planning a Cinco de Mayo celebration, stop right here because this tres leches cake is everything you need to end the day on a sweet note. It’s ultra-moist, perfectly sweet, and loaded with all the flavors you crave. It's made with super moist vanilla sponge cake soaked in "tres leches" sauce and then topped with fluffy homemade whipped cream. After one slice, it may become your favorite dessert!
Best Tres Leches Cake Recipe
Translated to "three milk cake" in English, Tres Leches cake is a classic Latin American dessert, especially popular in Mexico. Traditionally, it's made with a super light sponge cake that's soaked in a mix of sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and whole milk. This irresistible tres leches recipe will leave you with a soft, fluffy cake full of milky flavor!
My unique technique and combination of ingredients create a light, flavorful sponge cake that soaks up the three milks perfectly without the sogginess. I make this tres leches cake recipe easy for everyone with simple steps and expert tips to give you the best results. And you won't need fancy equipment or skills to make it!
Katalin's Key Take on How Wet Tres Leches Cake Is Supposed to Be
The fun thing about tres leches cake is that every version differs depending on where you try it. Some places serve it extra moist and milky, while others are lighter on the milk. I like mine to be super moist yet not so soggy that it falls apart. In my opinion, it should be full of milk flavor and tender enough to eat with a fork, but not so soupy that you need a spoon!
How you bake your cake determines the texture. If it's slightly overbaked, it'll be drier and absorb more milk. On the other hand, if underbaked, it is wetter and messier. And since the cake continues to soak as it rests, it looks and tastes different today than it will tomorrow.
In this version, I use the classic condensed and evaporated milk. However, instead of regular milk, I use heavy cream to keep the cake from getting too soggy. I also use my moist vanilla sponge cake as the base, which includes butter and oil (unlike other tres leches cake recipes that leave out fat in the sponge, supposedly to help it absorb the milk better). My cake soaks up the milk beautifully without feeling too heavy and has a delicious buttery flavor that others don't have! My other trick: I remove the thin caramelized layer on the cake before pouring the milk so it absorbs directly and evenly.
To make sure it turns out just right, I recommend using a fork or toothpick to poke small holes across the surface of the cake, pouring the milk slowly and in stages, and letting the cake chill for at least a few hours or overnight!
Ingredients
Vanilla Sheet Cake
- 300 g (1½ cups) Granulated sugar
- 113 g (½ cup) Unsalted butter at room temperature
- 55 g (¼ cup) Oil
- 3 Eggs at room temperature
- 240 g (1 cup) Greek Yogurt at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 375 g (3 cups) All purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder
- 1 teaspoon Baking soda
Tres Leches
- 340 g / 12 oz can Evaporated milk
- 400 g / 14 oz can Sweetened Condensed milk
- 115 g (½ cup) Heavy cream 36% fat
Whipped cream topping
- 460 g (2 cups) Heavy cream, 36% fat, use it cold
- 60 g (½ cup) Powdered sugar, sifted
- fresh strawberries to garnish
- ground cinnamon for sprinkling
Start with a moist sheet cake
Before starting, you need to prepare a few of your tres leches cake ingredients to ensure they emulsify correctly. The Greek yogurt, eggs, and butter (unsalted butter only) must be at room temperature. See my guide on softening butter quickly for tips. Stick your eggs in warm water for 5-10 minutes if necessary.
Preheat your oven to 175℃ / 350℉ (without a fan) and prepare a 9x13-inch / 22x33 cm pan by greasing it or lining the bottom and sides with parchment paper.
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and granulated sugar together for a few minutes until it comes light and fluffy. Then, add the oil and the room-temperature eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Lastly, stir in the room-temperature Greek yogurt and vanilla extract.
Next, sift the all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the wet ingredient mixture. Don't skip the salt – it's necessary to balance the sweetness! Use a rubber spatula to gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together until just combined, taking care not to overmix.
Pour the cake batter into your prepared baking pan and use an offset spatula to smooth the top. Bake for approximately 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Do not overbake unless you want dry cake!
Once baked, remove the sides as well as the thin, caramelized layer that has formed on the top of the cake. Let the cake cool completely to room temperature while it is still in the pan.
Make the "Tres Leches" sauce
To make the "tres leches," whisk the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy cream together.
Next, carefully pierce the cake all over using a large fork or wooden skewer, ensuring the holes reach the base of the pan. Then, slowly and evenly, drizzle the milk mixture over the cake, allowing it to soak in thoroughly. You may need to wait a few minutes between each addition to avoid over-soaking the cake.
Let the cake chill for several hours or overnight so the flavor really sets in!
Top with homemade whipped cream
The heavy cream must be very cold and have a high fat content (min. 36%) to make homemade whipped cream.
Using an electric mixer, whip the cold heavy cream and powdered sugar together in a bowl for about 2-3 minutes, until it becomes light and fluffy.
Spread the whipped cream evenly over the top of the cake, then lightly dust the top with ground cinnamon. Garnish with fresh strawberries, and enjoy!
Leftovers? This is how you store it
If you have leftovers, you can cover and store tres leches cake in the fridge for up to two days.
I don't recommend freezing the frosted cake, as it may become icy due to the milk, and the texture of the whipped cream will change once frozen.
Expert tips
- For the best results, use full-fat Greek yogurt and milk, European-style butter with 82% fat, and heavy cream with 36% fat.
- Do not open the oven door during the first 25 minutes of baking, or it could cause the sponge cake to deflate.
- Every oven bakes differently. It's best to check for doneness using the toothpick test rather than relying solely on time.
- When making the whipped cream, stop whipping as soon as it starts to reach stiff peaks. Otherwise, it may break and turn into butter!
- If you live in a warm climate or need the whipped cream to hold its shape for an extended period, you can stabilize it with gelatin or full-fat mascarpone cheese, as explained in my Chantilly cream recipe.
Useful Equipment
Successful baking requires precision and accuracy. Always use a digital scale to measure your ingredients. Likewise, a digital oven thermometer ensures you have the correct oven temperature.
An electric hand mixer comes in handy when whipping the wet ingredients for the cake and making the whipped cream. You'll need a rubber spatula to fold the dry ingredients into the cake batter.
I use a 9x13-inch sheet pan for this recipe.
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