The Best Tres Leches Cake — with a Puerto Rican Spin

My husband is from San Juan, Puerto Rico and though we live in New York City, the majority of our family is based on the island. Three years ago, after the devastation of hurricane Maria, our city apartment provided succor for so many relatives and friends who were left without power at their island homes.

Around that time, I found relief from constant worry about the island’s recovery though cooking as many Puerto Rican foods as my olla could bear.

One recipe from that period stands out for me: pastel de tres leches or three milks cake. It is memorable to me not only because I rarely bake, but because I was able to adapt island flavors to this classic Latin American dessert, which originally hails from Nicaragua.

This sponge cake gains its luscious texture from three milk products — condensed, evaporated and fresh— and is topped with a fourth: whipped cream.

As I wrote in the Wall Street Journal, this comforting confection, based on a recipe from Ronnie’s family, reflects Puerto Rico itself to me.

Its texture calls to mind the island’s humid, tropical climate. Its use of canned dairy — imperishable, no need for refrigeration — speaks to the stamina and grit of the people. Its use of three milks pays homage to the island’s triad of cultural influences: Africa, Spain and the U.S. mainland. And a lacing of rum commemorates the island’s agriculture, and fondness for the spirit, in a delightfully sweet way to toast a place and people so very close to my heart.

For more Boricua traditional dishes, check out one of our favorite Puerto Rican abuela cooks Doña Felipa and her family-famous arroz con gandules, bacalaitos (cod fritters), as well as the island’s signature dish arroz con pollo with the perfect pegao, that prized layer of caramelized, slightly burnt rice at the bottom of the pan. You’ll become a pegao believer, we predict.

Ready to Try a Puerto Rican Take on Tres Leches Cake?

Tres Leches Cake: The Taste of Puerto Rico Itself

Recipe by Kathleen Squires

3.9 from 90 votes

Cuisine: Puerto Rican

Servings

10

servings

Ingredients

• The Cake

• 1 Tbsp butter, for greasing pan

• 5 large eggs, yolks and whites separated

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 1½ tsp baking powder

• 1/3 cup milk

• 2 tsp coffee liqueur such as Kahlua

• 1 can evaporated milk (12 oz)

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 oz)

• 1 can coconut milk (13.5 oz.)

• 2 Tbsp Puerto Rican rum (añejo)

• Whipped Cream

• 2 cups heavy cream

• 4 Tbsp confectioner’s sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 dash ground cinnamon

• 1 dash ground nutmeg, freshly grated

Directions

• Butter bottom and sides of a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat egg whites on high until stiff peaks form, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to medium and gradually beat in sugar. Then beat in yolks one at a time. Sift together flour and baking powder, and fold into wet ingredients. Mix in milk and coffee liqueur. Pour mixture into buttered baking dish.
• Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into center of cake emerges clean, about 30 minutes. Let cool 15 minutes. After cooling, use a toothpick or skewer to puncture cake’s surface at 2-inch intervals.
• In a large bowl, whisk together all canned milks and rum until well combined. Carefully pour onto cooled cake. Cover cake pan with foil and refrigerate at least 2 hours.
• In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat together heavy cream, confectioner’s sugar and vanilla on high, until stiff peaks form: 4 to 5 minutes.
• Spread whipped cream on top of the chilled cake. Finish by sprinkling with ground cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg. Serve immediately.

Notes

• Serve this cake bien frío — very cold. Its milky-sweet flavors shine that much brighter when it’s super chilled.