Tres Leches Cake

This is a favorite cake of both Tamara and myself. We have been making it for years and several months ago came across our new go to recipe. It is from the Pioneer Woman, Ree Drummond. It has just the right amount of moistness without the the sogginess that sometimes occurs with these cakes. The secret is the lightness of the batter; folding in the whipped egg whites right at the end. This allows lots of pockets for the milk mixture to ooze in. It is easy to make and makes a wonderful dessert for company or just for the family.



1 C flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
5 eggs
1 C sugar, divided
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 C milk
1 can evaporated milk
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 C cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9X13 pan with cooking spray.

In a bowl, whisk together the first three ingredients. Set aside.

Separate the eggs. Beat yolks with 3/4 C of the sugar until pale yellow. Stir in milk and vanilla. Pour into the flour mixture and stir gently until combined.

Beat egg whites until soft peaks appear. Continue beating while adding 1/4 C sugar. Beat until stiff. Fold into the batter. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Turn out onto a rimmed platter to cool.

While cake is cooling, mix together the evaporated milk, condensed milk and the cream. After the cake has cooled, prick the cake with a fork. Drizzle all but 1 cup of the milk mixture over the cake. Pay attention to the edges. Sometimes I end up trimming the cake if the edges are too dry. You don't actually use the excess cup of milk in the cake--it is too much for the cake to absorb. Save it and use it for a sweet french toast, rice pudding, or if all else fails, put it down the drain.

Let the milk absorb for a half an hour. Now it is ready to ice with some sweetened whipping cream. Use 1 1/2 to 2 cups of cream with a few tablespoons of powdered sugar to desired sweetness. Whip until thick and spread over the surface of the cake. Decorate with whole or chopped maraschino cherries if desired. Now try to eat just one piece.