Strawberry Tres Leches Cake is a perfect dessert; ideal for summer. The cake absorbs the sweet strawberry milk blended with three kinds of milk and then is poured over a light and airy sponge cake. Add a little cinnamon on top before adding the whipped cream and you have a deliciously sweet, airy cake with tiny pockets of strawberry flavor.
June 1st is world milk day and what better way to celebrate it than by making a cake? This cake is a little more involved than most, but the result is so worth it. Instead of using condensed milk, I used regular 2% milk. The only reason for this is that I needed to blend the strawberries to make the strawberry milk for this cake. You can try using the condensed milk, but I’m not sure if it will come out thicker than intended. Of course, you can fix this by adding some water to loosen it.
How to make Strawberry Tres Leches Cake
This cake requires a little bit of involvement, but it’s a delicious cake that is worth the work! It’ll remind you of the cartons of milk you got as a child, or that you still get today if you really like them that much!
- Strawberries
- Sugar
- Evaporated Milk
- Milk: You can use whole or 2%. I used 2% milk. You can also substitute this for sweetened condensed milk, but you need to be able to blend the strawberries to create strawberry milk. It might be a little thick. I recommend using regular milk over sweetened condensed milk for this recipe.
- Heavy Cream
- All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Eggs: You will need to separate the eggs for this recipe. This is a key step.
- Vanilla Extract
- Powdered Sugar
- Food Coloring: Completely optional. I used it to color the whipped cream to create a dusty pink color.
- Ground Cinnamon
In a blender, add the strawberries and sugar. Do not blend yet. Let them sit together until the juices from the strawberries are released, about 15-30 minutes. Add the evaporated milk and regular milk, then blend until everything is pureed. Transfer to a container and add the heavy cream. Stir together, then let it steep in the fridge for about an hour. In one bowl, take the egg yolks and sugar and beat with a hand mixer or standing mixer until ribbons start to form. It has to be a pale, yellow color. Add the vanilla and milk and mix on low speed. Add in the flour and fold to incorporate. In another bowl, beat the egg whites with the whisk attachment until stiff peaks form. Add this to the egg yolk mixture. Pour the batter into a 13×9 cake pan and bake for about 18-20 minutes. Stick a toothpick in; if it comes out clean, it’s cooked through. Let it cool completely. Once cooled, poke holes in the cake with a skewer or fork. Strain the strawberry milk over the cake and allow the cake to soak it in. Throw out the puree. Transfer this to the fridge and leave it for 2-3 hours, or overnight. Beat together the heavy cream and powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. Add the food coloring if using. I used 6 drops of red and 2 drops of blue. Spread the whipped cream over the cake after 2-3 hours, add some sliced strawberries, then serve!
Tips & FAQs
- Can this be made vegan/dairy-free? I’m sure it can, but I haven’t tried it. There are recipes out there most likely.
- Why three kinds of milk? Tres leches stands for “three milks” in Spanish, so it makes sense for the three! The strawberry milk is key to this cake. In the traditional recipe, sweetened condensed milk is used, but the condensed milk might make the strawberry milk thick. I would use regular milk instead of condensed milk.
- Why do I need to wait 2-3 hours for the milk to soak in? I can’t just serve it right away? No. It is necessary to let the milk steep in the cake for that long. It really helped the strawberry flavor come through the cake. If you serve it right away, the milk will just flow out and get everywhere, thus losing the key component of the tres leches cake.
- Add the heavy cream after blending the strawberry milk: If you blend it with the strawberry milk, it’ll thicken up and you won’t be able to pour it over the cake. When you whip heavy cream, you whip air into it, which is what creates whipped cream. We don’t want that for the cake.
Want the recipe? Click print below! Let me know how it came out for you by tagging me on Instagram (@missravenskitchen) and using #missravenskitchen! Follow my Facebook page for updates as well! Let me know if I need to tweak anything.
Strawberry Tres Leches Cake
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb strawberries, stems removed and chopped
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
- 1 1/3 cups whole milk
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 6 large eggs, separated
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1 tbsp powdered sugar, sifted
- Food Coloring, 6 drops of red, 2 drops of blue (optional)
- 1/2 lb strawberries, stems removed and sliced.
Instructions
- In a blender, add the chopped strawberries and sugar. Allow them to sit together until the strawberry juices come out, about 15 to 30 minutes. Pour in the evaporated milk and regular milk. Blend until pureed. Transfer the strawberry milk to the container and stir in the heavy cream. Transfer to the fridge to allow the strawberry puree to infuse the milk, about 1 hour.
- Run the strawberry milk through a strainer into a measuring cup. Throw out the excess puree
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×13-inch pan and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Using a hand mixer or standing mixer with the paddle attachment, beat egg yolks and sugar until ribbons form and it doubles in volume. You want a pale yellow color. Mix in the vanilla and the milk on low speed until combined (do not overmix. Mix until just combined), then fold the egg yolk mixture into the flour mixture.
- In a separate bowl, add the egg whites and beat with the whisk attachment on high until stiff peaks form, about 3 to 4 minutes.
- Fold the egg white mixture into the egg yolk and flour mixture.
- Pour the batter into the cake pan and bake for 18 to 20 minutes. Let this cool completely in the pan before proceeding to the rest of the recipe.
- Using a skewer or fork, create little holes on the top of the cake. Pour the strawberry milk mixture over the cake (it may seem like a lot, but it will absorb!). Transfer to the fridge for 2 to 3 hours, ideally overnight.
- Just before serving, top with the cinnamon and spread the whipped cream. In a bowl, using a hand mixer or standing mixer, mix the heavy cream and sifted powdered sugar until peaks form. Add the food coloring, if using. Top the cake with ground cinnamon, the fluffy whipped cream, and garnish with slices of strawberry. Slice and serve.
Nutrition Facts
Calories
261.83Fat (grams)
9.9Sat. Fat (grams)
5.53Carbs (grams)
37.68Fiber (grams)
0.97Net carbs
36.73Sugar (grams)
27.71Protein (grams)
6.56Sodium (milligrams)
154.18Cholesterol (grams)
96.03I did my best to research! Let me know if these are correct!
Miss Raven's Kitchen 
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