How To Make Mexican Milk Poke Cake

It’s the 391st day of quarantine period in our region and it’s a never-ending exploration and discovery of food and cuisines around the world. It amazes me to know the endless possibilities of different their transformations.

Today, I’m learning about cakes and one of my favorite kinds is the poke cake. I hate dry cakes and the method of poke cake addresses the dryness of the cake. Poke cake is made by creating holes into a baked cake and pouring syrup or liquid to add flavor and moisture, hence the name.

One famous cake from Mexico is actually a poke cake. Have you heard about their three milk cake or locally known as the Tres Leches Cake?

1. Prepare all the ingredients needed. 

• 2/3 cups fresh milk
• 300ml evaporated milk
• 200ml condensed milk 
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 5 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp salt
• milk spread
• chocolate powder

2. Separate the egg yolks from their whites.

3. Beat yolks with three-quarter cup of sugar until it turns to light yellow in color.

4. Whisk in a third cup of milk and a teaspoon of vanilla.

5. Sift in flour and salt and mix using spatula. Set this aside.

6. Whip egg whites while gradually adding the rest of the sugar until it reaches stiff peaks.

7. Gently fold in whipped egg whites one scoop at a time.

8. Place this in a pan with grease paper.

9. Preheat oven at 170 degree celsius and bake for ten minutes. Have a toothpick check.

10. While baking, make the tres leches by mixing a third cup of fresh milk, evaporated milk and condensed milk.

11. Once the baking is done, let it cool for a couple of minutes.

12. Flip and poke holes.

13. Pour half of the milk mixture into the cake.

14. Let it rest in the fridge overnight.

15. Top it with some milk spread.

16. Dust it with chocolate powder. You can also sprinkle nuts or cornflakes as alternative.

17. Your Tres Leches Cake is now done and ready to be served.