Monday, June 4, 2012

tres leches cakes

My friend Jane asked me to make some dessert for her fiance's birthday a few weeks ago. He wanted Tres Leches cake, she wanted them in jars topped with strawberries and whip cream. Easy enough! 

I've made Tres Leches cake before, and although it was good, it was far from perfect. I didn't want to end up with heavy, dense cakes that turned into mush. Absolutely so sogginess allowed.

At first I was going to use this recipe from Alton Brown, but after reading some of the reviews and the recipe itself, I decided that I wanted a recipe that was more sponge-like, so it would inherently be light and I wouldn't have to poke the shit out of it to get the milk mixture to soak in properly.

 I ended up using this recipe from the Pioneer Woman. It's a sponge cake- light and filled with holes ready to soak up all that sweet liquid. Perfect.

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I sprayed each jar with Pam, filled them, using about 6 tablespoons of batter each, and baked them for about 20 minutes.

After they had cooled completely- I put the jars back into their boxes and covered them with plastic wrap where I let them chill overnight.

I also mixed up the milk mixture the night before and let it chill.

About 9 hours before the party- I tested out a few variations. Leaving some alone, poking lots of holes & using more/less liquid, then letting them sit in the fridge for 2 hours.


The best result: no hole poking, the sponge has plenty to start with.




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6 hours before the party, I poured 2 tablespoons of liquid onto each cake and let it sit...


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...and after a few minutes, the milk totally soaked in. I covered them again, and let them chill until it was time to deliver them to the party!


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We topped them with sliced strawberries (I use an industrial slicer made for mushrooms that I got at Orson Gygi- I LOVE that thing, it makes perfect slices and so fast!) and whipped cream, them put the lids on. Most of them stayed in the fridge until it was time for dessert, but they did just fine sitting on the dessert table too. 

They were delicious. No sogginess whatsoever, and the strawberries and whip cream complimented the sweet cake perfectly. I highly recommend making them for your next party! 

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