Tres Leches Cake with Dulce de Leche Glaze
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A stunning tres leches cake with a rum-spiked dulce de leche glaze.
Popular in Latin America, tres leches cake or pastel de tres leches is a light and fluffy cake soaked with a mixture of three milks: sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream (leche means milk in Spanish). It’s a homey cake served right from the baking pan and it has a consistency similar to bread pudding or custard.
In this version, rum is added to the soaking liquid and, instead of the traditional whipped cream topping, a simple rum-spiked dulce de leche glaze covers the cake (which, I guess, technically makes it a quatro leches cake). My husband calls it “heaven on earth.”
What You’ll Need to Make Tres Leches Cake
Before we get to the recipe, can I just tell you how many tres leches cakes I baked before arriving at this version? Eight! Finally, I found a recipe by pastry chef Nick Malgieri that was a spot-on. The key to his recipe? Using a chiffon batter for the base and cooling the cake upside-down. I jazzed up the recipe by adding rum and dulce de leche.
How To Make Tres Leches Cake
Begin by combining the egg yolks, oil, water and vanilla in a mixing bowl. Whisk to blend.
In another bowl, whisk together the flour, part of the sugar, and the baking powder.
Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture.
Using an electric mixer, beat for one minute to aerate. Set aside.
Next, combine the egg whites and salt in a clean, dry bowl and beat until foamy and soft peaks form (when you lift the beaters or whisk out of the bowl, the peaks will hold for a second and then melt back into themselves).
Add the remaining sugar in a steady stream and beat the mixture until stiff peaks form. As you can see below, the mixture will be glossy, and when you lift the beaters or whisk out of the bowl, the peaks will point straight up with just a tiny droop at the top.
Add the a quarter of the egg whites to the batter and stir to combine — this lightens the mixture making it easier to fold in the remaining egg whites.
Fold in the remaining egg whites — this is just a gentle mixing method that helps the batter retain the volume of the beaten egg whites. It’s easy: use a large rubber spatula to cut down vertically through the two mixtures, then gently turn half the mixture over onto the other half. Continue cutting down the middle and turning a portion over. Don’t stir. The egg whites should be fully incorporated but only just so — try not to over mix.
Transfer the batter to an ungreased 9 x 13 x 2-inch glass or ceramic baking dish (do not use metal). It’s very important not to grease the pan; a chiffon cake needs to grip the sides of the pan to rise. And the cake needs to stick to the pan since it cools upside-down.
Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the cake is set and golden.
Let the cake settle for 1 to 2 minutes (you want it to deflate just a bit, so that the top of the cake is level with the rim of the baking dish). Invert 4 glasses onto the countertop and invert the cake pan onto them, positioning one in each corner of the pan. A chiffon cake needs to hang upside down to cool or it will collapse and fall.
Let the cake cool for about an hour, then flip it over and run a sharp knife around the edges to loosen it from the pan. Poke it all over with a toothpick or skewer.
Make the tres leches soaking liquid by combining the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, and rum.
Pour it slowly over the cake, allowing the cake to absorb the moisture as you go. Don’t rush this process or the liquid won’t be absorbed evenly.
It’s helpful to tilt the pan slightly back and forth to help it absorb.
Refrigerate the cake for at least eight hours or overnight to allow it to fully absorb the tres leches mixture. Then, prepare the topping by combining the dulce de leche, rum, and water in a bowl. Microwave it for about one minute so it’s easier to blend.
Spread the glaze over the chilled cake.
Make a pretty design by swirling the glaze with an offset spatula or butter knife.
Chill the cake until ready to serve.
More Cool, Creamy Dessert Recipes
Tres Leches Cake with Dulce de Leche Glaze
A stunning tres leches cake with a rum-spiked dulce de leche glaze.
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 3 large egg yolks
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- ½ cup water
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup and leveled-off with a knife
- 1 cup sugar, divided
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 5 large egg whites
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
For the Soaking Mixture
- 1 (12-oz) can evaporated milk
- 1 (14-oz) can sweetened condensed milk
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
- 3 tablespoons dark rum
For the Glaze
- 1 (13-oz) can dulce de leche, preferably Nestle
- 1 tablespoon dark rum
- ¼ cup water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F and set a rack in the middle position.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, oil, water and vanilla.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment or beaters, combine the flour, ¾ cup of the sugar, and the baking powder; mix on low speed for 20 seconds to combine. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and beat (start slow to combine then increase to medium for stand mixer/medium-high for hand mixer) for one minute to aerate it slightly. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and beat for just a few seconds more. Set aside.
- In a clean, dry mixing bowl, combine the egg whites and salt. Using the whisk attachment or beaters, whip the egg whites (on medium speed for a stand mixer/medium-high speed for a hand mixer) until they are white, foamy, and beginning to hold a very soft peak, 40 to 60 seconds. Increase the speed (medium-high for stand mixer/high for hand mixer) and gradually add the remaining ¼ cup of sugar in a slow stream. Continue whipping the mixture until it is shiny and holds stiff peaks, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Using a large rubber spatula, add ¼ of the egg white mixture into the batter and mix thoroughly. Add the remaining egg whites to the lightened batter and gently fold until the batter is uniform. Do not over-mix. Scrape the batter into an ungreased 9x13-in glass or ceramic baking dish (do not use metal) and smooth the top (note that it's very important NOT to grease the pan). Bake the cake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until it is set and golden.
- Let the cake sit on the stovetop for 1 to 2 minutes, until the cake settles (you want it to deflate just slightly, so that the top of the cake is level with rim of the pan), then invert four glasses onto the countertop and invert the cake pan onto them, positioning one in each corner of the pan. (A chiffon cake needs to hang upside down to cool or it will collapse and fall.) Let cool for 1 hour.
- Once the cake has cooled, flip it over and run a sharp, thin-bladed knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the cake from the sides. Poke holes in the cake with a skewer or point of a small, sharp knife at ½-in intervals.
- Prepare the soaking liquid: in a large bowl, whisk together the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream and rum. Slowly pour or spoon the soaking liquid over the cake, tilting the pan every so often to help it absorb evenly. Be patient: this process takes about 10 minutes. If the cake is slow to absorb, run a knife around the edges of the cake again and poke a few more holes. Don't worry if it looks like a mess; it all gets covered with the glaze anyway. Place the cake in the refrigerator, uncovered, to chill for at least 8 hours or overnight.
- Once the cake has chilled, make the glaze: in a medium microwave-safe bowl, combine the dulce de leche, rum and water. (Note: If you want a really boozy cake, change the proportions in the glaze to 3 tablespoons water and 2 tablespoons rum). Heat for 30 to 60 seconds in the microwave to soften the dulce de leche, then whisk until completely smooth. Let the mixture cool to room temperature, then spread over the cake, swirling artistically with an offset spatula or butter knife. Place the cake back in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Serve with fresh fruit, if desired.
Nutrition Information
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- Calories: 234
- Fat: 8 g
- Saturated fat: 3 g
- Carbohydrates: 34 g
- Sugar: 27 g
- Fiber: 0
- Protein: 5 g
- Sodium: 112 mg
- Cholesterol: 41 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Let me start by saying I am born and raised Mexican from Mexico City where we eat Tres Leches cake and it is found pretty much every where you go. . . I have made this recipe twice and it is amazingly delicious! It was my dad’s favorite cake and I wanted to try to make it to remember him as he passed away two years ago. I will be making this cake every year and my family and friends are thankful for it.
For those like me who might be having a hard time finding Dulce de Leche already canned, here is what I had to do since I live in Japan and cannot find it.
I put a can of condense milk in a pressure cooker, once it has started to release steam, continue to cook for 45 minutes, let cool down on its own and take out the can carefully to continue to cool down, and that is all it is to it, there is your homemade dulce de leche.
Do not let anything get on the way to make this fabulous recipe.
Thank you Jenn
Hi Jenn – greetings from Sydney !
I made this once and it turned out fab ! Just wondering if you have tried making 2 of these cakes and layering them? Am wondering if the top layer might be too heavy and squish the bottom layer? Thanks so much
P
Hi Paul, Glad you enjoyed it. I like that idea but not sure how you would remove the cakes from the pan to stack them. I think they would fall apart. Sorry!
Made this for a friend who loves Tres Leches and it was a huge hit!!
Ack, I’m about to make the tres leches part, but there’s no rum in the house. I know you’ve said we can leave out the rum, but I do have tequila, triple sec, kahlua, grenadine – would any of those work as substitutes or am I better off leaving out the alcohol?
Hi Jenny, I think Kahlua would be wonderful 🙂
I made the tres Leches Cake for the first time last week. Couldn’t find the Nestles brand ( I am in Canada) but used Eagle Brand. Everything was fine until I put the caramel glaze on top. refrigerated for 5 hours, and when I removed from fridge, much of the glaze had seeped into the cake, with little left on top!
Hi Cathy, That is very odd. I wish I could offer an explanation but I’m not sure why that happened. I’ve never used the Eagle brand — perhaps it isn’t as thick?
I had the same problem, The cake turned out perfect but then the dulce leeched straight through the whole cake. I used homemade dulce, which may be thinner than store-bought. I’m going to try again without adding water to the dulce and letting it chill cooler than room temp before topping it on. At least it tasted great!
Does the rum dissipate? My partner is a recovering alcoholic so I must be careful. Thanks!
Hi Dawn, It doesn’t since it’s not cooked — it is perfectly fine to just leave it out. The cake will still be wonderful 🙂
Thank you, thank you, thank you. I really enjoyed the way you made these recepies so easy to follow. Great taste of finished product.
Good easy simple to learn thank you
I have never left a comment for any recipe ever, but I had to thank you for this one. I made this for my daughter’s birthday. She wanted a dulce de leche cake and I didn’t have the first clue how to go about it. I made it exactly as per your instructions. No changes. The result was exactly what you said it would be. Really light but moist, flavorful and rum tinged. Just perfect. My daughter, the foodie, said it was absolutely the best cake ever!
Thank you Jenn for testing and re-testing so that we don’t have to do the work. You now have my trust, I will be trying more of your recipes.
One question though, there is a lot of cake, can it be frozen? If so what do you recommend? Should I slice it first and freeze individually?
So glad you enjoyed the cake! To be honest, I probably wouldn’t freeze the cake after it has been soaked. (Next time, you could freeze some of the cake before soaking it though.) That said, it will keep well in the fridge for several days.
My cake turned out awesome! I made it yesterday and topped it this morning. I had a piece for breakfast – I mean, I HAD to test it before the cookout later – and it was just fantastic. I did the entire cake using my electric hand mixer. I used unbleached all-purpose flour, my eggs were room temperature, and I timed the mixing of the dry and wet ingredients on my phone to exactly 1 minute on medium speed. I carefully folded the egg whites into the batter and was so cautious I probably under combined the two. The cake rose beautifully and after letting it rest for 2 minutes, I carefully turned it over. It did not fall out of the pan. I’m wondering if the people who had trouble may have accidentally greased the pan?