Pastel De Tres Leches
This is what I came home to yesterday! Neener. Neener.
I have seen recipes for these for years and have never made one. Victor saw this in a magazine and made it while I was at work.
(Note: THIS is why a well-stocked kitchen is so important. We had all the ingredients necessary in the house. Had he needed to go to the store, it probably would not have been made!)
The cake just screams flavor and is surprisingly light considering the ingredients. Absolutely wonderful.
Pastel De Tres Leches (Mexican Three Milk Cake)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 6 eggs
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 3 tsp vanilla – (Mexican, if you can find it)
- 1 - 14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 – 13 oz can evaporated milk
- 3 cups heavy cream
- Fresh fruit (strawberries, peaches, mangoes, whatever you like)
Spray the bottom and sides of a 9x3 inch springform pan with cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt, set aside.Combine eggs and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat on high speed until doubled in volume, about 5 minutes. Reduce speed to low; add the water and 1 teaspoon of the vanilla. Mix well. On very low speed or by hand using a spatula, gently fold dry ingredients into the batter.
Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the cake is firm on top and has pulled away from the sides of the pan. Remove from oven and place pan on a rack to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. Turn the cake out on a serving platter, place a cake plate over the cake, and turn it right side up. Set aside to continue cooling.
While the cake is cooling, whisk together the sweetened condensed milk, the evaporated milk, the remaining 2 tsp vanilla, and 1 cup of the heavy cream; set aside.
After the cake has cooled, using a serrated knife, gently slice off the top skin of the cake and discard. Prick the cake all over with a long toothpick or skewer. (This will allow the cake to soak up the milk mixture) Pour milk mixture over the cake in several batches, allowing it to soak in as much as possible each time. Refrigerate.
When ready to serve, pour the remaining 2 cups heavy cream into a chilled bowl and beat with chilled beaters until stiff peaks form. (We add sugar and vanilla to our whipped cream) Either pipe or spread the whipped cream on the top and sides of the cake and garnish with fresh fruit, or slice the cake and place a dollop of the whipped cream on top of each slice and garnish with the fruit.
I Love My FoodSaver
I love my FoodSaver! I bought one several months ago because I just hate freezer burn - and I love to buy bulk on sale.
I have to admit it was a bit pricy, but that 20% discount coupon helped. I've used it for everything from meats in the freezer to nuts on the shelf. I like it a lot.
So I was shopping and bought a ton of ground beef. If this were winter, it would be made into meatloaf. But this is BBQ time. Time for burgers.
I made up 8 different batches of seasoned and flavored burgers:
- Jalapeño: I have a jar of roasted jalapenos in the fridge that is pretty awesome. Added a bit of cumin, S&P.
- Asian: There is almost always apricot sauce in the fridge (we make a ton of Aunt Emma's cookie filling and then use it all year long for all sorts of things.) So - Apricot filling, sambal olek (chili paste) a squirt of fish sauce and a splash of soy sauce.
- Moore's Marinade: The original version from down south. This really makes for a good burger
- Thai: Sriracha sauce and Thai Green Curry powder. Spicy!
- Berberé: Ethiopian spices. They pack some heat. Not as good as the homemade berberé that Mewded used to make for me, but it works!
- Chimichuri: Okay, chimichuri is supposed to be a marinade, but I love using the spices for other things. Mixed into a burger just seemed like the right thing to do.
- Buffalo: Moore's Buffalo Wing Sauce. Why not?!?
- BBQ: Apple Butter BBQ Sauce is just what the Grill-Doctor ordered!
What's especially good about the burgers is they can be grilled and eaten with any number of breads, buns, or rolls (and I do like any number of breads, buns, or rolls) or they can be grilled and served sans bread with something to accompany. I also placed parchment between the burgers before vaccuuming.
And now that the freezer is full, I'm making salads for dinner.
Bread, Glorious Bread!
Panera Bread just opened up down the way from work. Just what I need - more bread...
Don't get me wrong - I love bread. A lot. But having even more bread within easy reach is.. well... wonderful, actually. And it will probably be my downfall.
We just finished the last of the Easter Bread at dinner last night. We have a loaf of Le Bus' Walnut Raisin Bread in the freezer (I absolutely love it!) , and just finished a fresh loaf of Panera's Sesame Semolina Miche a few days ago.
I walked into Panera and it was worse than being a kid in a candy store. I wanted everything. And I wanted big huge loaves of everything. And then I wanted to go home and make 500 different sandwiches.
Grilled with different cheeses oozing out - along with fresh-from-the-garden tomatoes, and maybe some prosciutto, or bacon and avocado, or.. or.. You get the picture...
My problem (okay, one of numerous problems) is that I don't really want to eat all of them - I just want a taste or two. At home, though, I don't have that option. I make it and I have to eat it. No wasting!
The one saving grace with Panera is that as good as their bread is - it's a lot more expensive than I want to spend on a regular basis. It shall be a special occasion bread. (And lord knows I can dream up special occasions!)
*** Edited later to add:
Two years later I'm making about 85% of the bread we eat and it's a lot better than anything one can get from a chain bakery. Yes, their breads are good. Mine are better.