Tres Leches Cake has a soft and ultra-moist crumb. It is soaked with a rich 3-milk mixture and topped with a lightly sweetened whipped cream. This is an authentic Tres Leches Cake recipe and the best I have tried. It beats any store-bought version all day long!
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Helpful Reader Review
“I have been making Natasha’s tres leches cake for years now and I literally won’t make another recipe! She also has a video that helps you along the way if you need it! Best cake ever!!! Truly one of my family and friends favorites!” – Cat ★★★★★
Tres Leches Cake Video
Watch my Tres Leches Cake video tutorial, and you will crave it until you make it. You’ll love the simplicity of this cake.
What is Tres Leches Cake?
Tres Leches is a popular, authentic Mexican cake. I am a fan of moist cakes and the first time I made this Tres Leches Cake it blew me away. The syrup is made of – you guessed it – tres leches (which means three kinds of milk). You poke holes into the cake before pouring over the syrup so every bite is decadently moist. The cake is rich but has a light feel to it and is balanced by the lightly sweetened whipped cream.
My cousin Katerina sent me this Tres Leches Cake recipe 15 years ago. She adapted it from the Pioneer Woman. I love this recipe so much that I developed a Tres Leches Cupcake for my Cookbook and bravely turned it into a Layered Tres Leches Cake (the cake is heavy with the syrup, but I did it!).
I love the simple, crowd-pleasing desserts that come together in a casserole dish like classic Tiramisu, our popular Strawberry Pretzel Salad, and of course, this easy Tres Leches Cake. They are easy to make and perfect to bring to potlucks and parties. They transfer well and are always the first to disappear.
Ingredients for Tres Leches Cake
This recipe calls for very simple ingredients, most of which are refrigerator and pantry staples:
- For the Cake: I use all-purpose flour (although several readers have reported excellent results with 1:1 gluten-free flour), along with baking powder for leavening, salt, sugar, eggs, vanilla extract and whole milk.
- For the Syrup: 3 types of milk are poured over the cake for moisture and rich flavor: evaporated milk, heavy whipping cream, and sweetened condensed milk.
- The Topping is a simple whipped cream frosting sweetened with sugar. Traditionally, people sprinkle ground cinnamon over the top, but I love using fresh berries over the top for a prettier presentation and for the tangy and sweet contrast with the cake.
Tips for the Best Tres Leches Cake
- Watch the video tutorial below before beginning to gauge the process and tools needed before starting.
- Measure Correctly – For the flour, spoon it into a measuring cup and level off the top.
- Cold eggs are easier to separate into whites and yolks.
- Fold gently with a spatula just until it is well incorporated then stop. Do not overmix since the cake relies on the volume of the eggs to rise.
- Avoid draft – While cooling the cake to room temperature, avoid any outdoor draft. Any egg-based cake can take on an “eggy” aroma if it gets outdoor air.
- Let the cake rest 30 min after pouring on the syrup so it can absorb every drop.
- Bake in a ceramic or glass casserole dish for the best rise and it’s easier to serve right out of the casserole dish.
How to Make Tres Leches Cake
- Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F and butter a casserole dish. Set up 3 mixing bowls.
- Sift the dry ingredients into the first bowl. Separate egg whites and yolks into the other 2 bowls.
- Beat yolks with 3/4 cup sugar using an electric hand mixer on high speed, until pale yellow (2 min). Stir in 1/3 cup milk and vanilla.
- Beat whites with clean and dry egg beaters on high speed until soft peaks form (1 min). With the mixer on, add remaining 1/4 cup sugar and beat on high speed until whites are stiff but not dry (1 min).
- Pour the yolk mixture over flour mixture and use a spatula to blend together. Gently fold in egg white mixture until just combined. Pour batter into prepared casserole and bake 30-35 minutes.
- Make the 3-Milk Syrup: In a large measuring cup (or a bowl with a pouring lip), combine 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream, 12 oz evaporated milk and 9 oz condensed milk. When the cake is cool, pierce the surface all over with a fork. Slowly drizzle the milk mixture over the cake. Let the cake rest 30 minutes to absorb and distribute the syrup then top with whipped cream and berries.
Is Tres Leches Cake Soggy?
It is supposed to be very moist, but not soggy. The cake base is a sponge cake, so it can absorb a generous amount of syrup without getting soggy – this is why I avoid using a boxed white cake mix, which can quickly become “soggy” since it’s not meant to absorb liquid. Letting the cake rest for 30 minutes after applying the syrup also helps to ensure the syrup is distributed evenly throughout the cake.
Make-Ahead Tips for Tres Leches Cake
Once the syrup is added to the sponge, you can cover and refrigerate overnight. You can also fully assemble the cake with the frosting 1 to 2 days ahead – as long as you beat the whipped cream topping to stiff peaks, it will keep well. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Add fresh berries just before serving, especially if the berries are sliced.
Can Tres Leches Cake be frozen?
You can make the cake base ahead of time. Allow the cake to cool to room temperature, then cover the casserole dish tightly with a couple of layers of plastic wrap and freeze the tres leches cake base up to 2 months. Thaw the cake in the refrigerator overnight or on the counter before using it. I don’t recommend freezing the cake once the syrup and frosting are added.
This has to be one of the moistest cakes around. It has such a lovely soft and spongy texture that it disappears fast – you’ll savor every bite. Make this for your next party, and you will become known for your Tres Leches recipe.
More Cinco de Mayo Recipes
If you’re a fan of authentic Mexican recipes as much as I am, you’ll love these reader favorites for your Cinco de Mayo menu.
Tres Leches Cake
Ingredients
Ingredients:
- 1 cup all-purpose flour, or substitute 1:1 GF flour
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 5 eggs, (large)
- 1 cup sugar, divided into 3/4 and 1/4 cups
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup whole milk
Syrup:
- 12 oz evaporated milk
- 9 oz sweetened condensed milk
- 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream
Frosting:
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream
- 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 cup berries, to garnish, optional
Instructions
How to Make Tres Leches Cake Base:
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F and butter a 9×13 casserole pan. Set up three mixing bowls.
- In a large bowl, sift together 1 cup flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, and 1/4 salt. Separate egg whites and yolks into the other two bowls.
- Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar with an electric mixer on high speed, until yolks are a pale yellow (2 minutes). Stir in 1/3 cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla.
- Beat egg whites on high speed until soft peaks form (1 minute). With the mixer on, pour in remaining 1/4 cup sugar and beat on high speed until egg whites are stiff but not dry (1 minute)
- Pour egg yolk mixture over the flour mixture and combine gently with a spatula. Gently fold in egg white mixture with the spatula until just combined. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread to even out the surface and bake at 350˚F for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
For the 3-Milk Syrup:
- In a large measuring cup (or a bowl with a pouring lip), combine 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream, 12 oz evaporated milk and 9 oz condensed milk. When the cake is cool, pierce the surface all over with a fork. Slowly drizzle the milk mixture over the cake. Let the cake rest for 30 minutes to absorb the milk. You can cover and refrigerate overnight at this point if desired.
To Make the Whipped Cream Frosting:
- Pour 2 cups cold heavy whipping cream and 2 Tbsp sugar into a large chilled mixing bowl and beat on high speed 1 1/2 to 2 minutes or until thick, whipped and spreadable. Spread over the cake with a spatula then decorate with berries if desired.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
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This recipe is PERFECT!!! The consistency of the cake is amazing! It was a HUGE hit with my students! I have a question. I have been searching for the perfect soft, spongey and moist vanilla cake for years now. I don’t know how many different recipes I have tried in all different methods of making it but they always come out too dense and dry and just not moist enough. Can I add butter or oil to this recipe to get a regular vanilla cake out of it that I could layer and frost?
Thank you for your help!
Thank you so much for your kind words and wonderful review, Lisa. I’m glad you loved this cake! I honestly haven’t tried that to advise but I think it’s worth experimenting with. If you try that, please share with us how it goes.
this is THE recipe for tres leches, this is my husband’s favorite cake and we frequent a local bakery to for a hearty piece of this cake. I had told my husband that I’m competing with that bakery’s tres leches and boy was he impressed!! I didn’t change anything from this recipe and watched the video couple of times to get it just right. I did make extra milk mix for mr. husband which was needed for our preference, and I had let it sit for 3 hours before serving and I thought the very base of the cake wasn’t as moist. but this morning I had some and it is perfection!!!! so maybe let it sit out for a bit longer. Overall 10/10. I made it for my husband’s birthday and all his family loved it and couldn’t believe I made it from scratch. Thank You Natasha !!
Wow! That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review Fayeza!!
Morning natasha,I was seeing the receipe for tres leeches and it looks amazing but just to let you traditional tres leeches is incorporated in the cake and in the frosting too you use 3/4 the milk mixture to the cake and the rest to the heavy cream do not add sugar but do add vanilla try it you will love it my great grandma taught me that one so it’s a hit in mexico thanks for your recipes
Thank you so much for sharing that with us Linda!
Hi. I love this cake. I I’m a BIG fan of moist cakes. I made it a dozen times already. I have a question though. I thought to make it with a twist – add some coconut into a batter. Do you think it will deflate the cake after baking?
Hi there Oksana, good to know that you have done this recipe a lot already. I haven’t tried adding some coconut into the batter yet but I would be interested in finding out too how it goes! If you do an experiment, please let us know how you liked that.
I added 1 tbl lemon juice and zest of 1 lemon to soaking solution and let it sit overnight in fridge. Next level!!!
Love it! Thank you for your suggestion, Richard.
Could you make this with chocolate cake instead of vanilla cake?
Hi Bonnita, I honestly have not tried this as a chocolate version, so you might need to google that. Since baking is so much of a science, I can’t make any recommendations without testing them first.
Fabulous recipe. Saw last week and made. Everyone loved it and wanted the recipe and some to take home…… I sis the strawberries on top as you showed. It was a great evening with friends…. Love your recipes……..Thanks…
I’m glad it was a hit! Thanks for your good comments and feedback, Cornelia. We appreciate it.
Don’t know what i did wrong but it’s not eatable at all 🙁
Hi Connie, I recommend rewatching the video a couple more times and checking out the other comments below the recipe for more tips.
Can i reduce the sugar to maybe 1/2 c in total?
I honestly haven’t tried that yet to advise. If you do an experiment, please share with us how it goes.
I am not an experienced cake maker. The first time I made this, it turned out good but after reading the comments here, I realized I could have beaten the yolks for a bit longer. So the second time around, that’s exactly what I did. And OMG!!! It came out PERFECT! I am now able to make one of my faaaavorite cakes! Thank you for this recipe! ❤️
Yay, that is so awesome! I’m happy that you were able to make a perfect tres leches cake. Thanks for your wonderful comments and review.
I Love all your cooking recipes, thanks for sharing. God bless you and to your family
I’m so happy you’re enjoying our recipes Veronica!
Made this for my sons girlfriend. I have never had one but she says it was like she expected and was pleased.
Good to know that, Sandra. Thanks for sharing!
I got huge kudos from my teenage kids! Thank you for sharing ~ this is definitely a keeper!
Yay, that is awesome! I’m glad they loved it.
absolutely love this recipe!! i was wondering if i could place the batter into a cupcake tin & make tres leches cupcakes? if so, do you know what temperature and how long it should be baked for?
Hi Tiffany, I haven’t tried turning this into cupcakes to advise of the measurements. You might need to experiment on that one. Please share with us how it goes if you try it!
I vacationed in Mexico a couple years back and I tried this cake and I loved it!! Since I can’t go back to Mexico I decided to try my own and it was amazing!! This cake is so moist and light and fluffy. It is hands down one of the best cakes I’ve ever made
Wow, that’s really great feedback. Thank you so much for sharing that with us, Helen! I’m glad you loved the recipe.
My best friend and I started a small bakery in her house and my boyfriend wanted this cake so we made two so we could test it we agreed it was perfect
I’m so glad you enjoyed that! Thank you for sharing that with me, Abby!
Fabulous recipe! I have already made it 3 times and every time I make it there are no leftovers 🙂
That’s when you know it’s good! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Hi natasha could you please write this recipe in grams ,that would be a big help to be
If you scroll down to our printable recipe card, most of our recipes have a metric conversion option on the printable recipe card. We are currently working on adding metric measurements to all of our recipes, but it is taking some time to add them one at a time. Thank you so much for being patient! In the meantime, check out our post on measuring which should help.
Please can i bake it in a loaf pan, slice it put in small containers?
Hi there, I haven’t tried that yet but I imagine that will work. Please share with us how it goes if you do an experiment.
Hi. I am making this at the moment and baked them in 3 loaf pans. They turned out well!
Thank you so much for sharing that with us.
Hi, I just want to thank you on this awesome cake! I bake it all the time for my 4 kids. I was wondering what would be the time in the oven if I double the recipe? can you double it? Thanks:)
Hi Maria, thanks for your wonderful review. I imagine that will work but I have not tried doubling it yet to advise of the time. You might want to check the comments section if others have already tried it.
Hi! I was wondering if I can substitute whole milk instead of the heavy whipping cream in the syrup bit?
Hi Vasudha, without trying those substitutions, it is hard to say. If you happen to experiment, I would love to know how you like it.