This cake is bursting with mango flavor in every bite. It is perfect to make during mango season. Another mango season favorite is my mango cheesecake. Bake it for summer birthdays or for summer gatherings.
What is Tres Leches Cake
Tres(Three) Leche(Milk) cakes are traditional to Latin America and they are sponge cakes that are poked after baking and then soaked in a sweetened milky mixture made of three kinds of milk - evaporated milk, condensed milk and heavy cream. The sponge itself is airy and it absorbs the milk mixture to form a luscious, dense and rich cake. Here’s another of my favorite flavor- do check out my masala chai tres leches cake recipe.
About My Recipe
The first time I made the mango tres leches cake was for Diwali celebration a few years back. Diwali is one of the most important Hindu festivals and usually people do not consume eggs or non vegetarian food on that day. Since I was serving it for a festive occcasion, I made an eggless mango sponge keeping the guest list in mind. Everybody loved the texture and flavor of the cake so much that I never bothered to change it. This mango tres leches cake recipe is -
Perfect for feeding a crowd. Has a saturated mango flavor- I use mango in the sponge, in the soaking liquid as well as the whipped cream. Its truly mango mania in cake form! Can be made 1-2 days in advance. If you are hosting, you can get dessert out of the way uptown 2 days in advance! Soft, rich and creamy- really really delicious! Everything you expect from a tres leches cake! Use fresh mangoes or canned puree- Yep! You can make this cake year round. I have tested this recipe with canned mango puree and it works. Fuss free simple ingredients - You need pantry staples like flour, sugar, oil, milk etc for the cake. The only “special” thing you need to purchase is mangoes.
Elements of the Cake
There are a few steps and components of tres leches recipe but nothing too complicated. You could divide the work between 2 days. The 3 essential steps of making the cake are - You can bake and soak the cake on first day and then next day just make the whipped cream and add it on top. I do it all the time.
Mango Sponge
The eggless sponge is super easy to make and we add mango puree to the cake batter for that deeply flavorful mango bite . If you wish, you can use the same recipe for baking just the sponge itself. The mango sponge is really moist. Serve with a cup of tea or coffee. The cake has a beautiful texture and it gets nicely browned. When you cut into it, the sponge is nicely dyed with natural yellow color of mangoes, I didn’t add any food color. The shade will vary depending on the natural color of your mangoes.
Mangoes
Make sure to used the best ripest and sweetest mangoes you can find else use store bought mango puree. If using fresh, I use either alphonso or kesar mangoes from the Indian grocery stores. Else, honey mangoes available widely during summer time in american stores work great. If you are using homemade mango puree, make sure to strain the pulp so that its not stringy.
Tres Leches Mixture
After the cake is baked, soak it in a milk mixture of evaporated milk, condensed milk and heavy cream. I also add mango pulp to the milk mixture. Allow for at least 6 hours of soaking (overnight is best) if you have at the time.
Mango Whipped Cream
Simply heavy cream whipped with mango puree and flavored with vanilla. This mango whipped cream is just irresistible and I can imagine it on so many things! Chill the bowl and the mixer blade for a fluffier whipped cream.
How to Make Mango Tres Leches Cake (Few Step Photos)
Serving and Storage
I always save 1 to 2cup of milk mixture to drizzle when serving. Serve chilled with fresh sliced mangoes. The cake stays well for 2-4 days in the fridge. I dont recommend freezing after soaking or frosting. However you can definitely freeze the mango sponge for a month. Thaw fully before going on to adding the milk mixture and topping.
Recipe Tips & Notes
Fresh Mangoes - You could use fresh seasonal mangoes to make a homemade mango puree or use store-bought mango puree. Add any flavors you like - Add cardamom powder, saffron or any flavor you prefer. I use vanilla because my kids prefer it. Baking pan - I used a 9 inch square pan for baking, however an 8 inch square pan works good too, you till have a thicker sponge requiring extra baking time(bake until skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean). You could also use a round pan. Mango Sponge - You could use this recipe to make just the eggless mango sponge and cover it in your favorite buttercream or frosting. I did use fresh mangoes to decorate the cake as you can see in pictures, however I noticed that by day 3, even though the cake still tasted amazing, the fresh mangoes turned a bit dryish. Something to keep in mind 🙂
