Tres leches cake
A Tres leches cake, or Pastel de Tres leches (literally: "cake of three milks"), is a cake or, rarely, a butter cake, soaked in three kinds of milk: evaporated milk, condensed milk, and either whole milk or cream. Since butter is not often used, tres leches is a very light cake, with many air bubbles. This distinct texture is why, although it is soaked in a mixture of three types of milk, it does not have a soggy consistency.
Popularity and Origins
The cake is popular in parts, if not all of, Latin America. The origins of tres leches are disputed, and are usually attributed to Mexico or Nicaragua, the two places where it appeared earliest[citation needed]. Mexico does, however, appear to have had recipes very similar to tres leches, which probably led to the now famous dessert being created there, and possibly then migrated to Nicaragua.[1] The Nestlé company also claims to have helped the tres leches recipe evolve, during World War II, in Mexico. The idea for creating a cake soaked in a liquid is probably of European origin, as similar cakes, such as rum cake, and tiramisu, use this method.[2]
Variations
Following the same recipe for the cake, but soaking it in a mixture of water, rum or brandy, and sugar, it is called pastel borracho (drunken cake). It is popular throughout Central America in this form.
In the Caribbean, cream of coconut is occasionally used instead of the condensed milk. As in the pastel borracho, rum is sometimes added.
In addition, fruit or nuts are added in some recipes, as well as many other kinds of alcohol.
At some restaurants in Texas and Florida, the addition of cajeta creates what is known as a cuatro leches cake.