Tres leches cake, aka three-milk cake, is a moist vanilla sponge cake soaked in a heavenly and dulce concoction made with three different types of milk: evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, and a generous amount of whole milk or sometimes heavy cream for that extra creamy texture.
It’s a classic cake with its origins spreading across Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Colombia, and many other Latin American countries.
What makes this cake so unique is the sweet milk mixture over the spongy cake that absorbs the rich blend topped with vanilla-y whipped cream topping.
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Keeping Your Tres Leches Cake Fresh And Delicious
Let’s start with the simple fact that tres leches cake is soaked in three different dairy products and topped with a whipped cream topping made with heavy cream. It also has an egg yolk mixture made with fluffed egg whites and egg yolks in the cake batter.
So, using high-quality ingredients well before their expiration date in your recipes is essential. Keep in mind that whole milk, heavy cream, and eggs expire, and these ingredients have a shorter shelf life.
So How Long Is Tres Leches Good For Stored In The Fridge?
After it has cooled down and the cake has had time to soak in the vanilla three-milk mixture, tres leches cake Is best within the first 24 hours. When stored properly, however, tres leches cake is still fresh and tasty for 3-4 days.
It depends on the expiration date of any of the perishable ingredients.
The Best Tips For A Longer Shelf Life
Do you love making tres leches cake as much as I do? It’s a true labor of love! But, when we have some leftovers, we want to make sure we can enjoy them for as long as possible. Let’s find ways to extend the shelf life of those delicious leftovers, shall we?
Ingredient Tips For A longer shelf life:
Check the expiration date on all types of milk you’ll be using.
To ensure the freshness of your pastel de tres leches, it’s best to use them at least two weeks before they’re close to expiring. This is especially true for whole milk or heavy cream.
The canned kinds of milk, like evaporated and condensed milk, have a longer shelf life because of the cooking methods and preservatives and are less at risk of spoiling.
After serving, keep it in the fridge.
Make sure not to keep it at room temperature for too long. Once you’re done serving, store it in the fridge as quickly as possible to save the milk from souring.
Fresh fruit toppings.
If you have special toppings, like fresh fruits and berries, on top of the cake, I’d recommend removing them and storing them in a different container if you plan on keeping the cake for more than 48 hours. Obviously, if they’re in the batter, then this is impossible.
Different types of Tres leches and how long they can be stored?
Remember the ingredients used if you’ve made a delicious tres leches cake of different flavors, such as lemon or strawberry.
For example, this lemon tres leches cake is made with fresh lemon juice and has a shorter shelf life because the acid in the lemon juice with the three milks shortens the cake’s shelf life. It’s best to enjoy the cake within 24-48 hours.
Storing Tres Leches In The Refrigerator
Once the whole cake has cooled down, it’s okay to store the cake in the prepared pan. Then, cover it with plastic wrap or aluminum foil. But I recommend using a silicone lid that creates a tight seal around baking dishes. Store your cake in an airtight container if you want it to stay fresh and delicious. It works like magic!
An airtight container will protect the cake from absorbing unwanted fridge odors.
Can You Store Tres Leches In The Freezer?
Yes! I have noticed that Whole Foods freezes their tres leches cake. It’s pretty genius because the three milk mixture defrosts just in time to serve when you leave it at room temperature.
So, can you freeze your tres leches? Yes. But remember that freezing food causes the water particles to freeze and can change the texture of the fluffy cake and whipped topping. But you can freeze it for a longer preservation.
Frozen tres leches can last up to two weeks when wrapped well. Store it in a pan, cover it with plastic wrap, and seal it with an airtight lid.
When Is It Time To Say Goodbye To Your Tres Leches Cake?
If you’ve noticed a rotten or sour smell? It’s time to say byee.
It’s not worth keeping, and it’s time to discard the cake. If the texture is off or the texture of the milk has changed, it’s time to throw the cake away. Spoiled milk turns into curds and has a sour smell.
Otherwise, you might be looking at a tummy ache or worse.
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