Tres Leche Cake

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2007

Show: Good EatsEpisode: Milk Made

Rated: 4 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (181)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(181)

Cook Time:
25 min
Level:
Intermediate
Yield:
1 (13 by 9-inch) cake

Times:

Prep: 45 min
Inactive Prep: 8 hr 0 min
Cook: 25 min
Total:: 9 hr 10 min

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Ingredients

For the cake:

Vegetable oil
6 3/4 ounces cake flour, plus extra for pan
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
8 ounces sugar
5 whole eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the glaze:

1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup half-and-half

For the topping:

2 cups heavy cream
8 ounces sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the cake:

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil and flour a 13 by 9-inch metal pan and set aside.

Whisk together the cake flour, baking powder and salt in a medium mixing bowl and set aside.

Place the butter into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium speed until fluffy, approximately 1 minute. Decrease the speed to low and with the mixer still running, gradually add the sugar over 1 minute. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl, if necessary. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and mix to thoroughly combine. Add the vanilla extract and mix to combine. Add the flour mixture to the batter in 3 batches and mix just until combined. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread evenly. This will appear to be a very small amount of batter. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until the cake is lightly golden and reaches an internal temperature of 200 degrees F.

Remove the cake pan to a cooling rack and allow to cool for 30 minutes. Poke the top of the cake all over with a skewer or fork. Allow the cake to cool completely and then prepare the glaze.

For the glaze:

Whisk together the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk and the half-and-half in a 1-quart measuring cup. Once combined, pour the glaze over the cake. Refrigerate the cake overnight.

Topping:

Place the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla into the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the whisk attachment, whisk together on low until stiff peaks are formed. Change to medium speed and whisk until thick. Spread the topping over the cake and allow to chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Tres Leche Cake
Alexandra Los Angeles, CA 11-20-2009
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yum-o
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

My husband's favorite dessert is tres leche. So, instead of buying it this time I decided to surprise him by making one from... scratch with my new bought kitchenaid mixer. This tres leche is THE BEST ever..not too sweet though..in the bakeries they are usually way sweeter than this one. You have to follow the recipe and buy a scale for measuring. It was easy and fun to make. I'm making it this week for my father in law's birthday. Can't wait to see him enjoy a bite of this yummy cake. LOVE IT!!!Read more
recipe Tres Leche Cake
Marco Houston, TX 10-25-2009
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Simple THE BEST Tres Leches!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

The best Tres Leches I have ever had. Simply delicious!! Thank you Alton.
recipe Tres Leche Cake
Brenda Perris, CA 10-21-2009
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WOW
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

my friend made this for my birthday. now, i'm mexican and have had a few of these cakes through out my lifetime. this one... is the best yet. my friend was telling me everything that she put in it and i was like wow, might as well serve me a bowl of sugar with milk. but anyway, she said that for the whip topping she only put half a cup of sugar and it came out awesome. i can't wait to make this on my own. i did hear that it is not your typical cake when you are baking.Read more
recipe Tres Leche Cake
NATALIE Whitehouse Station, NJ 10-21-2009
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The Best Ever!!!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This is my first time trying an Alton Brown recipe and it was on point!! I searched high and low for another recipe but could... not match the reviews so I went for it. And even though I used a bigger pan so the cake wasn't as thick - it was still delicious. Not too sweet for my palette. I'm definitely making this again.Read more
recipe Tres Leche Cake
SCOTT WOODSBORO, MD 10-15-2009
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Flower and Suger by weight not volume
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

I haven't made this cake yet, but wanted to get the recipe after watching the show. I noticed after reading a couple of the... reviews that some people were saying it was too sweet. I'm wondering if it wasn't because they were measuring the suger and flower by volume not weight. Alton tell you on the show they're by weight but the recipe doesn't mention that fact. I don't know what the difference is between the two measurements so I can't say that's the cause for the sweetness especially since I haven't made the cake yet. In any case it probably has a negative effect on the recipe if you measure them by volume. I just wanted those who haven't seen or rember it to be aware that those measurements are indeed by weight. Read more
recipe Tres Leche Cake
Juanita Elyria, OH 10-14-2009
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Horrible
Rated: 1 stars out of 5

I made this cake yesterday for my father's 80th birthday. As a matter of fact, I made one and it was so thin I had to make... another. I consider myself a pretty good cook. This was the worst cake I have ever made. The texture is terrible and the cake is very heavy. My dogs wouldn't eat it. I love Alton Brown, but I would not recommend this cake to anyone. Juanita Elyria, OhioRead more