Salted Caramel Tres Leches Cake
Tres Leches cake is a rich vanilla sponge cake soaked in three different milks. It’s also one of my families absolute favorites. So I thought we would celebrate the new season by adding a little salted caramel. I swirled it into the cake and also into the whipped cream, then sprinkled it with flakey sea salt. I usually would make my own caramel but I found some at this local orchard the other day and had to use it!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 5 eggs
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
- 3 tbsp. caramel
- 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
- 2 tbsp. sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 tbsp. caramel
- pinch of flakey sea salt
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl combine together the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder and salt, whisk until combined then set aside.
In a large mixing bowl beat the butter until smooth and then add in the sugar and mix all together until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs one at a time, mixing between each one until it’s incorporated. Pour in the vanilla extract. Add in the dry ingredients and mix it well, making sure to scrape the sides. Pour the batter into a 9×13 inch pan and bake for about 30 minutes. Spoon the caramel over the top and use a knife to swirl into the batter. Bake until golden and when a toothpick is inserted it comes out clean.
While the cake is baking, in a large bowl combine, the whole milk, condensed milk and the evaporated milk. Whisk all together. Set aside.
Once the cake is baked and slightly warm, it soaks up the milk better when warm. Poke holes in the cake using a fork. Then gently pour the milks over the cake letting it soak it all up as you go. Cover with plastic wrap and let it set in the fridge for at least an hour.
While it’s chilling, whip the heavy cream with an electric mixer on high, when it gets slightly foamy add in the vanilla extract, and sugar. Mix until stiff peaks form. Spread the whipped cream evenly over the cake then drizzle the caramel over the top and swirl it into the whipped cream. Finish it by sprinkling a little flakey sea salt on top. Enjoy! Keep covered it in fridge for about 5 days.