Tres Leches with Mango

This weekend unfortunately i couldnt review a spot because Bobby wasnt feeling too good due to a tooth ache: poor baby. Therefore, this entry will only consist of my delicious dessert.

This weekend i made a Tres Leches (Three Milks) cake. Ive had countless pieces of it here and there at different restaurants, families houses and store bought but everyones take on it is a little different. Some people add different flavorings such as coconut or caramel, i like the coconut ones because its not overpowering with sweetness like some caramel ones tend to be.

The one i made from the Food Network Magazine: May 2010, it came out pretty well. My only concern was the amount of liquid, i used almost all of it but i left out maybe a cup because it didnt want it to be falling apart when i tried to get it out of the pan. Most peoples review of this recipe said the liquid was a little too much and yes, it was but i think if you pierce the cake enough when its hot/warm, it'll absorb so much more as appose to it being cooled off then pierced THEN soaked. Another thing to it is the longer it sits the more it absorbs. When i was pouring the liquid over the cake i did it kind of it steps. I allowed the cake to soak up about 1 1/2 cups of the liquid at a time. Once the liquid disappeared into the cake i repeated it until the liquid was overflowing onto the top of the cake and that left me with about a cup left over that i mentioned before.

Ingredients:

• vegetable oil, for greasing
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup sugar
• 2/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups whole milk
• 1 1/2 cups cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 12-ounce can evaporated milk
• 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 tablespoon dark rum
• 2 large ripe mangoes
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 cup heavy cream
• ground cinnamon, for sprinkling

Preparations:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan with vegetable oil and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Make the cake: Beat the eggs and sugar in a large bowl with a mixer until pale and slightly thick, about 6 minutes. Slowly beat in the melted butter, then beat in the vanilla and 1/4 cup whole milk.

Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Sift the flour mixture over the egg mixture, then gently fold together with a rubber spatula to make a thick batter. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Run a knife along the edges to release the cake from the pan.

Meanwhile, whisk the remaining 2 cups whole milk, the evaporated milk, condensed milk and rum in a bowl. Pierce the warm cake all over with a fork, then pour the milk mixture gradually and evenly on top, letting the cake absorb the liquid until all is used. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.

Before serving, make the topping: Peel, pit and dice the mangoes. Puree half the mangoes in a blender with 2 tablespoons sugar. Transfer to a bowl and fold in the remaining diced mango.In a separate bowl, beat the heavy cream and the remaining 1 tablespoon sugar with a mixer until soft peaks form. Slice the cake; top each piece with the whipped cream and sprinkle with cinnamon. Serve the mango topping on the side.

Another thing i want to mention is cake flour. Cake flour is a type of flour that is made differently from the typical flour. It has different enzymes so dont think that you could make this at home. Some people believing if you sift it and add salt its cake flour, NO. They usually sell it in the box where they sell all the baked goods in the supermarket.

So good this cake is, it was worth the overnight wait. It wasnt too sweet, too soggy or anything. It was moist and delicious. The mangoes cut the richness that the cake may have so its a great compliment to the cake. You can always do without it and deal with the decadent richness. I hope someone tries this at home, you wont be disappointed. It isnt hard to make or time consuming as you may think. DELICIOUS is all it is! Pictures are courtesy of my loving boyfriend and his new Droid X.

Tomorrows dinner is served chilled....