Tres Leches Cake

     In the past, every time I went to a Mexican restaurant, I'd get so full of fajitas that I never had room for dessert. That's why for years, I had no idea what I was missing out on. So ironically, the first time I tried tres leches cake was at my college cafeteria. I admit that I complain about the food there constantly, so much so that my friends joke that I should be a food critic. However, once in a while, they do manage to come up with something I really like. This was one of those times. I liked it so much that I decided to learn to make it myself. Now for a few notes about this recipe: First, I know tres leches usually has some kind of whipped cream and maraschino cherries on top, but I purposely serve mine plain because I think it's sweet enough without that. Plus, I just have an unnatural hatred of maraschino cherries, but if you want to add these things, go for it! Second, in my quest to make my recipes just a little healthier, sometimes I use almond milk as a substitute for 2%.

INGREDIENTS:
The cake:
1 cup flour
5 eggs, separated
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup 2% milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking powder
The leches:
1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 12oz can evaporated milk
1/4 cup 2% milk

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 and butter and flour a 9in. springform pan.
2. Put the bowl of an electric mixer in the fridge to chill. Then carefully separate the eggs. Whip the egg whites with 1/4 cup of the sugar using the whisk attachment in the cold bowl until they reach the consistency of whipped cream.

I walked away to take phone call while the mixer was going, so these are a little over-whipped....

3. Transfer the egg whites to another bowl. put the yolks in the original bowl and beat them with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup milk, vanilla, flour, and baking powder.

4. Gently fold the egg whites into the yolk batter using a rubber spatula. Then, fill the cake pan and bake for 35-40 minutes. The cake will not rise a whole lot. That's okay.

5. Remove the cake from the pan, and let it cool on a rack for 1 hour. Then, take a fork, and poke A LOT of holes all over the surface. This is how the leches will absorb.

6. In a small saucepan, heat the condensed milk, evaporated milk, and the other 1/4 cup of 2%. Just warm it gently, don't boil it. Then, cool it in the fridge for 20 minutes. Since the cake is served cold, the only reason you need to heat the milks is so that you'll be able to mix them together well.

7. Using a ladle, spoon the milk mixture over the cake. Give each spoonful enough time to absorb before adding another. You'll be surprised by how much the cake will absorb. You will probably use most of the milk, but if the cake seems to stop absorbing it, (i.e. if milk starts to pool in the middle for longer than usual) then don't add more. Be sure to pour enough milk around the edges of the cake, and not just in the middle.

It will look like this right after you put the first couple of spoonfuls on it. Give it a minute or two, and it will  absorb. Make sure you put the cake on a deep enough plate to avoid a mess. It's okay if you spill some over the sides while you're first pouring the milk, but make sure it's not sitting in a pool of milk the whole time you store it.

8. When you've added as much milk as possible, put it in the fridge for at least an hour before serving.

As I said, you can decorate this as you wish or eat it plain. It's the perfect treat after a spicy meal. Tomorrow, I'll continue my Mexican food streak and show you how to make Spanish rice that doesn't come from a box.