It’s hard to believe it’s already July. I still have a big chunk of summer break left, and I’m trying to enjoy it but its hard not to dread going back to school. On the other hand, I cannot wait for Fall. As I have stated before, I absolutely ADORE autumn. However, I really wish it wasn’t at the same time as school. I really can’t enjoy crisp air, crunchy leaves, and a disgraceful amount of pumpkin spice if I’m too busy surviving homework and exams.
But that’s not important right now. Live in the moment they always say. And right now is hot and humid.
Although hot, humid, and sticky days quite frankly suck, it’s ok because we can bake. There’s always so much to bake in the summer, and people tend to focus a lot on fruit. And although I publish tons of fruit centered recipes, I am a chocolate girl through and through. Really, coffee stuff is my very favorite and this cake just happens to be both.
I think we need to start a petition to make tres leches cake THE cake of summer. I mean maybe it already is and I’m just not with the times, but if it isn’t then that needs to be changed. It’s cake, but its served cold which is perfect for hot hot days. So with that lets get into it.
What is Tres Leches Cake?
Tres Leches Cake translates to “Three Milk Cake” if you didn’t know. I feel like that’s pretty obvious but I’m just making sure. Tres Leches starts with a sponge cake (typically vanilla) which then gets poked all over with a fork. Then you stir together three kinds of milks; evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and whole milk. This leaves you with an incredibly soft and almost pudding like cake. Today, we’re keeping the same core concept, but changing up the flavors and some of the proportions.
Describe this Cake to Me
Taste: Tres leches is typically very sweet, and tastes mostly like vanilla and sweetened condensed milk. But this cake has a little bite from the cocoa powder and coffee, plus a warmth from the toasted hazelnuts.
Texture: Tres leches has a very specific texture. The easiest way to describe it is soggy, but that doesn’t sound very enticing. But I promise it’s actually very tasty, and not a disintegrated mess. The cake starts off very spongey and light, which helps it absorb that milk mixture. This leaves you with a soft, almost pudding like cake.
Ease: This cake is not too difficult, but not super quick and easy either. There’s a lot of whipping for the cake batter to make sure it stays nice and fluffy, but it shouldn’t take you long. The tres leches couldn’t be simpler, you just whisk together all the ingredients and pour it over the cake. Honestly the hardest part is waiting all night to eat it!
The Cake
The cake part is a fluffy sponge cake which is perfect for soaking up that tres leches. To get that hazelnut flavor, we start off by toasting up some raw hazelnuts in the oven. Then grind that up in a food processor until you get to the consistency of almond flour. Most of the espresso flavor comes from the tres leches part, but there’s two teaspoons of espresso powder in the batter to help draw it out. There’s also very little cocoa in the batter, only two teaspoons. We really want the hazelnut to shine in this part.
Tres Leches
As I said earlier, traditionally a Tres leches cake only uses evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and whole milk in the actual Tres Leches part. We still use all three, but with the addition of some brewed coffee and cocoa powder. I also use a little less sweetened condensed milk than traditionally used because I think it makes it too sweet.
Resting Time
Technically, the cake only needs to chill for three hours once you pour the milk on it. However, I very very very strongly recommend you let it sit overnight. This lets the cake really absorb that flavor and moisture. This also makes this a great make ahead recipe for your next big summer gathering.
Topping
The topping for this cake is pretty simple so it doesn’t distract you from the cake itself. It’s a simple chocolate whipped cream, but I made sure to keep it not very sweet. It’s just heavy cream, cocoa powder, a tiny bit of confectioners sugar, and some espresso powder. It’s the perfect finishing touch to contrast the sweetness of the cake.
Mocha Hazelnut Tres Leches
Ingredients
Method
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and lay the hazelnuts on a baking sheet. Bake for 3-5 minutes or until lightly toasted. Be careful to keep an eye on them, as they can burn easily! Let them cool for 5 minutes.
- Add the toasted hazelnuts to a food processor and grind into a very fine meal, similar to that of almond flour. The finer the crumbs are, the better.
- Keep your oven on at 350℉, and grease a 9×13 inch baking dish with butter. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the hazelnut meal, flour, baking powder, espresso powder, cocoa powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a medium sized bowl using a hand or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the egg yolks with the sugar until they turn pale yellow and roughly double in volume. Add the vanilla and whole milk and whisk until just combined. Pour into the dry ingredients and use a large rubber spatula to fold it in.
- Rinse and dry the bowl you used for the egg yolks. Make sure there is no water or egg yolk left, or else the egg whites may not whip properly. Using a hand or stand mixer, whip the egg whites on high speed until stiff peaks form (when you lift the whisk out of the bowl, the egg whites should hold shape). Carefully fold half of the egg whites into the batter, trying not to deflate them too much. Repeat with the second half.
- Pour the batter into the previously prepared baking dish and bake for 18-20 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool for 30 minutes before adding the tres leches.
- In a medium sized bowl with a spout, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, whole milk, and coffee. Sift in the cocoa powder and whisk to combine.
- Poke the slightly cooled cake all over with a fork. You want a lot of holes, so poke around 20-25 times. Pour the tres leches evenly over the cake. It may look like too much to absorb, but don't worry. Cover the cake with cling wrap and chill for 3 hours, or preferably overnight. Letting the cake soak overnight will enhance the flavor and make sure it is really set.
- In a large bowl using a hand or stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whip the heavy cream with the confectioners sugar, cocoa powder, espresso powder, salt, and vanilla until you have stiff peaks. Spread the whipped cream over the finished cake and top with chopped hazelnuts. Serve cold and enjoy!
- Cake stays fresh covered in the refrigerator for up to four days.
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