These Tres Leches Cupcakes are sweet, soaked, and spiced! They’re unbelievably delicious and topped with a light whipped cream and dusting of cinnamon.
The Best Dessert There Ever Was
Tres Leches Cake has to be my absolute favorite dessert. Every sweet bite sends me into a tailspin of divine oblivion. You know what I’m talking about.
When your eyes unwillingly close gently, slightly roll into the back of your head, as fireworks dance across the back of your eyelids. THIS is when you know you’ve hit the flavor jackpot. And this is precisely what occurs after every bite of a Tres Leches Cupcake.
So, what is a Tres Leches Cupcake? Where does the recipe originate? How do you make them? Read on to learn all of the answers to these questions so you can make these unbeatable Tres Leches Cupcakes yourself!
What Is Tres Leches?
The term tres leches translates from Spanish as “three milks”. Fitting, too, since Tres Leches Cake features a dense and spongy cake that is soaked in a mixture of three milks: evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy cream. It has origins in Mexico and Latin America, where it is still widely loved and served. Once soaked, the cake is topped with lightly sweetened whipped cream and dusted with cinnamon. It’s sweet and creamy, and so delicious!
How To Make Tres Leches Cupcakes
The cake is a dense butter cake that is tender and moist. As previously mentioned, the cake is then soaked in a mixture of three milks: evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy cream.
Since the cake itself will be soaked, it’s imperative that you use foil-lined baking cups. If you use regular paper liners, they’ll be soaked as well, which won’t be pretty! Alternatively, if you were making a Tres Leches Cake, you would be able to do everything in the pan in which you baked the cake.
Once the cake is baked, use a skewer to poke holes in each cupcake. This allows the milk mixture to absorb better. You’ll then pour the milk mixture over the cupcakes until it fully absorbs. Note that this may take some time, so be patient as you add the milk mixture in phases.
These sweet treats are topped with delicate whipped cream and dusted with warm cinnamon. The end result is a light, delectable, and divine dessert that you and those you’re baking for will love.
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Tres Leches Cupcakes
Ingredients
For the cake and soaking liquid:
- 6 eggs, separated, at room temperature
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp coarse salt
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
- 1 cup flour, sifted
- 1 12 oz can evaporated milk
- 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
For the whipped cream:
- 1 cups heavy cream
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- Cinnamon, for garnish
Instructions
For the cake and soaking liquid:
- Preheat oven to 325º. Line two muffin tins with foil-lined baking cups. You'll definitely want to use the ones with foil, since you'll be soaking the baked cake in the milk mixture (it won't be pretty without them!).
- In a standing mixer combine egg whites, baking soda, and salt until soft peaks form. Reduce speed and add egg yolks and sugar. Whisk until completely combined. Fold in the melted butter until just combined. Add flour in batches, folding gently until just combined.
- Add batter to the liner-filler muffin tin, filling each about halfway up. This recipe should make about 20 cupcakes, so note that it won't make a full two dozen! Bake the cupcakes for 25 minutes, rotating the pans halfway to encourage even baking. Remove cupcakes from oven.
- Using a wooden skewer (or else a fork works fine too!), poke each cupcake multiple times. Whisk together the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and heavy cream in a glass measuring cup. Gently pour the mixture over each cupcake, allowing it to absorb after each addition. This will take a while to get through all the liquid!
- You can either opt to top each cupcake with the whipped cream and cinnamon, or else refrigerate up to one day, topping with whipped cream when you intend to serve them.
For the whipped cream:
- In a stand mixer (or using a hand mixer), add cold heavy cream to a bowl that has been placed in the freezer for at least 30 minutes. This helps encourage the cream to stay chilled, which assists in it whipping faster!
- Whip until soft peaks form, and add sugar. Whisk until combined and top each cupcake. Sprinkle each cupcake with cinnamon.
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