Friday 27 September 2013

Daring Bakers - September 2013!

What a great challenge this month!

I was delighted to see that we had to bake a Tres Leches Cake! I see this kind of cake all over the internet and I was intrigued to make it and taste it! Plus, I didn't take part in the August challenge and I really missed it!

The chalenge was chosen by Inma from La Galletica. Inma gave us information and some options. I searched it a bit on Pinterest and found more variations.
I was between a vanilla and a chocolate tres leches cake, but I thought that the taste of the milks "syrup" would show best with a vanilla cake. Right, wrong? I guess I will have to make a chocolate one at some point, just to compare.

The recipe I used was easy and fast to prepare, i.e. you don't have to separate the eggs. I also used only the  whipped cream for topping, no fruit.

Classic tres leches cake with Salted whipped cream
recipe adapted from here

cake:
165gr all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
115gr butter
220gr sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

milk "syrup":
150 ml sweetened condensed milk
150 ml evaporated milk
100 ml heavy cream

salted whipped cream:
200 ml heavy cream
60 gr confectioner's sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt

* Preheat the oven to 180oC.
* Mix flour, baking powder and salt.
* Mix butter and sugar and beat until fluffy.
* Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each one.
* Add in vanilla.
* Add the flour mixture and beat until just combined.
This cake is thin. Think "sheet cake thin". So when your batter is ready, choose a pan at the appropriate size and line it with parchment paper.
* Pour batter in and smooth it.
* Bake for 30 min. untill a tester skewer comes out clean.

* 10 min. before the cake is out of the oven, prepare the milk syrup:
* Put the milks and cream in a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and boil for about 5 min. stirring constantly.
* Take the cake out of the oven, remove the parchment paper genlty by turning it upside down and then put it back in the pan and prick it all over with a fork (Be careful!).
* Pour the milks over the cake.
* Let it cool very well and then put it in the fridge overnight.

* For the whipped cream, beat all the ingredients until stiff peaks form.
* Spread the whipped cream over the cake and serve.












A few notes please:
- We tasted the cake before it was cooled.... Warm, sweet cake smelling delicious... There was no way we could wait!
- The rest of the cake did go into the fridge and it was amazing the next day! Cold and moist... OMG!
- I decided to make a salted whipped cream, because the cake is very sweet and I wanted some balance, which, I am happy to admit, I achieved. Just don't overdo it with salt. Go slowly and taste along the way to see where you are OK with the saltiness.
- The cake never made it to the afternoon...
- I am imagining a layer cake with thes leches cake layers and vanilla or maple whipped cream in between!
- My sister is crazy about this cake!

Thank you Inma! I really enjoyed this challenge!

Louise

6 comments:

Ana M. Adserías said...

Your cake looks delicous!!

Sweet'n'Savoury said...

Ingenious of you to use salted whipped cream ..must have tasted amazing with the sweet cake

Rebecca - Bakenquilt.com said...

Good idea to use the salted whipped cream! I found the cake to be a little too sweet and that would help. I'll have to try sprinkling some on my leftovers.

Anonymous said...

Oooooh, love the idea of salted whipped cream... and maple whipped cream... and a chocolate sponge cake. I forsee making a few more tres leches cakes in the future, ha!

shelley c. said...

Oh my gosh, I love that you salted the whipped cream - I bet that was GOOD. And your cake looks so airy - amazingly accomplished without separating the eggs! Awesome job.

Louise said...

I think that the cake turn out well, airy and soft, becausde of the soaking, not brushing of the milks syrup. I was afraid that it could come out dry, so I just poured the milks!