July 10, 2013
Rob
0

Pastel de tres leches – Tres leches cake

Last weekend I was invited to a Peruvian lunch (the food was amazing by the way) and I decided (why not?) to bring a typically Latin American dessert: the pastel de tres leches (“cake of three milks”).

Tres leches cake - Step 41

The step-by-step recipe below might seem a bit long but it’s actually not so difficult to make this delicious cake that comes from Mexico and that is widespread in all South America.

Tres leches cake - Step 36

What is the pastel de tres leches?

The tres leches cake is a simple spongecake soaked for hours in a milk syrup. Then the cake is usually iced with crème Chantilly and topped with fresh fruits (here you can add some exotic touch!).

Tres leches cake - Step 38

This milk syrup is a combination of three dairy products, usually heavy cream or crème fraîche, sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk.

Where do I find the ingredients for the tres leches syrup?

Tres leches cake - Step 14

You can find heavy cream and sweetened condensed milk in any supermarket. I had some trouble, though, in finding the evaporated milk, also called “media crema”, here in France. It should be available in the ethnic food section of shop, but in case you don’t find it, you can replace it with powdered milk (available everywhere) plus twice its weight in water (e.g. 100g of powdered milk + 200ml of water).

How to soak the cake

This cake was absolutely delicious: sweet but not too much, devilishly soft and spongy. The cream and fruits were also a perfect complement that made the dessert lighter.

Tres leches cake - Step 45

There was only one thing I didn’t fully appreciate: my cake was not completely soaked after 3 hours. So here are my suggestions on how to soak the tres leches cake well:

  • Place the inverted cake in a container with high borders and slightly larger than the cake
  • The cake must be soaked when it’s still hot
  • Make sure you poke holes (many!) in it then ladle the syrup on top
  • Remove the “crust” (top, bottom and border) of the cake with a serrated knife: this will facilitate the absorption of the liquid by the cake

After all the French pastry I had seen and eaten in the last 2 years, this was definitely a refreshing novelty for me, as it is something that cannot be found everywhere. Plus, I really like the original and modern decoration (thanks to my book “On baking”)!

 

Tres leches cake

Print recipe

Ingredients

Spongecake

90gPastry flour
9gBaking powder
80gEgg yolks (~ 4 eggs)
30gGranulated sugar
120gEgg whites (~ 4 eggs)
35gGranulated sugar

Milk syrup

210gSweetened condensed milk
180gEvaporated milk/Media crema (or 60g of powdered milk + 120ml of water)
240gHeavy cream (or crème fraîche)
5mlVanilla extract
30mlDark rum

Crème Chantilly

350mlHeavy cream (cold)
35gBrown sugar
150gMascarpone cheese
2 teaspoonsVanilla extract

Directions

Spongecake

1
Put the egg whites and half of the sugar in the bowl of a mixer
2
Whip on medium speed until the whites are foamy. Add the remaining sugar and keep on whipping on medium speed until the whites are stiff. Set aside.
3
Whip the egg yolks with sugar on medium speed until they reach the ribbon stage
4
Stir the whipped whites with a whisk to restore a smooth texture. Fold one-third of the egg whites into the whipped yolks. Fold in the remaining whites carefully (mix with an upward movement just until the whites are incorporated)
5
Sift the flour and baking powder together and sprinkle one-third of the mixture over the batter and fold in
6
Repeat step 6 until all the flour is incorporated
7
Place a round of parchment paper on the bottom of the pan
8
Grease the pan with melted butter
9
Sprinkle some flour in the middle of the pan. Flour the borders by rotating the pan.
10
Pour the batter in the pan up to 3/4 of its height. Bake at 180° until the cake is golden brown and spongy, approximately 30 minutes.

Soaking

11
In the meantime, stir the syrup ingredients together in a bowl
12
When the cake is ready, take it out of the oven and invert it on a rack. Remove the parchment paper
13
Poke holes in the cake with a toothpick or, better, a knife: this will allow the cake to absord more of the milk syrup
14
Place the cake in a saucepan or a container that has high border and is light bigger than the cake. Ladle the milk mixture over the hot cake. Let the cake soak for at least 3 hours.

Crème Chantilly

15
Place the heavy cream, mascarpone, brown sugar and vanilla extract in a chilled mixing bowl
16
Mix on high speed until the cream is smooth and light, but not grainy nor dry. Avoid overwhipping.

Decoration

17
Remove the cake from its container and let it sit for a few minute on a rack to drain any excess syrup
18
Ice the cake with crème Chantilly: to do this, place an abundant quantity of cream on the top of the cake, then level it with a spatula until the excess cream starts covering the sides; finally keep the spatula vertically and pass it from top to bottom in small movements across the side of the cake...
19
...until you cover completely the cake. If necessary, add more cream directly on the side.
20
Decorate the top of the cake with a teardrop-shaped border using a piping bag fitted with a medium plain pastry tip.
21
Finally decorate the side with baked drop-shaped meringues and top the cake with fresh fruits (I used cubed mango and strawberries). Coat the fruit lightly with neutral glaze.

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