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Sourdough tres leches cake.
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Sourdough Tres Leches

Sourdough Tres Leches is a Mexican cake that is rich, moist, and very soft. The sourdough cake base is soaked in a tres leches (3 milks) mixture and topped with a delicious cream cheese frosting.  This is a perfect way to use up some of your sourdough discard.
Course Dessert
Cuisine Mexican
Keyword sourdough tres leches cake
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 39 minutes

Ingredients

Ingredients for the cake:

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 5 farm fresh eggs (large)
  • 1 cup sugar divided into 3/4 and 1/4 cups
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup whole milk
  • 1/2 cup sourdough starter fed or unfed

Ingredients for the syrup:

  • 1 can-12 oz evaporated milk
  • 1 can 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
  • 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

Ingredients for the cream:

  • 2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 1 package cream cheese softened at room temp
  • 1/2 cup sugar or more to taste
  • Berries optional

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 °F and butter a 9x13 casserole pan. Set up three mixing bowls.
  • In a large bowl, sift together 1 cup flour, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, and 1/4 salt.
  • Separate egg whites and yolks into the other two bowls.
  • Beat egg yolks with 3/4 cup sugar with an electric mixer on high speed, until yolks are a pale yellow (2 minutes). Add in 1/2 cup sourdough starter and mix for 1 minute. Stir in 1/3 cup milk and 1 tsp vanilla.
    Egg yolks and milk mixed in a bowl.
  • Beat egg whites with the remaining 1/4 cup sugar on high speed until soft peaks form (2 minute).
    Egg whites beat with sugar in a kitchen aid mixer.
  • Pour the flour mixture into the egg yolk mixture and gently combine with a spatula.
    3 different bowls with egg whites, egg yolks, and flour mixture for sourdough tres leches.
  • Gently fold in the egg white mixture with the spatula until just combined.
    Sourdough tres leches cake.
  • Pour batter into 9x13 pan and bake at 350˚F for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
    Sourdough tres leches cake batter.
  • While the cake is baking, make the syrup by combining the heavy cream, condensed milk and evaporated milk.
    Combining heavy cream, condensed milk and evaporated milk for Sourdough tres leches cake.
  • When the cake is baked, gently poke holes in it with a fork.
  • Make the cream while the cake is cooling by whipping the cream cheese with 1/4 cup sugar. Then separately on high speed, mix 2 cups of heavy cream with 1/4 cup sugar until fluffy. Then gently mix cream cheese with whip cream for a smooth cream.
  • Once the cake is cooled, pour the syrup all over the cake.
    Pouring tres leches mixture on a Sourdough tres leches cake.
  • Then add the cream on the cake and decorate with fresh strawberries or raspberries.
    Sourdough tres leches cake.

Notes

Note: If you make this cake in the evening, it will taste best the next day when it's fully soaked.