Easter is this Sunday, which I feel like came out of nowhere fast. I mean, I know it comes every year and it isn’t really a surprise but I do feel like I was caught off guard this year. That might just be a personal problem because my mother’s birthday this year falls on Easter itself, so I was busy thinking about that, rather than the holiday. With all that being said, I figured I needed to squeeze in one last Easter recipe for you to try. Just in case you needed some more last minute inpiration. This Carrot Cake Tres Leches is a mash-up of two of my favorite cakes. Of course, you can’t have an Easter brunch or dinner without carrot cake, or at least I don’t think so. And then, Tres leches is something I grew up eating a lot of and although some times don’t need updating, I felt like this time around, it definitely wouldn’t hurt. So I figured the most logical thing to do was to bring these both together to create one ultimate Easter dessert that everyone will love!
For the cake, in a large bowl, beat together the oil, 1/2 cup sugar, and egg yolks until thick and well-combined. Stir in the milk, spices and orange zest until smooth. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and stir until just combined.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup sugar until stiff, glossy peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter, adding it in batches.
**Tip: Do not over-mix at this stage or else the whites might deflate. Use a gentle folding motion with a spatula to not over-mix the batter.**
Fold in the grated carrot, raisins and chopped walnuts. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread out evenly.
**Tip: If you want, you can also add in 1/2 cup shredded coconut and 1/2 cup diced pineapple chunks. Those are some classic carrot cake add-ins as well but I’m not a fan of either in mine.**
Bake until golden brown and a toothpick, inserted in the center, comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
In a large measuring cup, whisk together the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream and vanilla extract.
Use a chopstick or long skewer to poke holes all throughout the cooled cake. This will allow the milk mixture to soak up properly into the cake.
Pour this mixture completely over the top of the cake. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 4 hours or overnight to allow the cake to soak up the milk mixture.
**Note: The longer the cake chills the better it will be as the milk mixture will have a proper chance for it to soak up, and will make the cake easier to slice and serve.**
To make the topping, in a large bowl, beat together the softened cream cheese, vanilla extract and salt until creamy.
Add the heavy cream and powdered sugar and beat until smooth and slightly thickened. Dollop over the cooled cake and spread out into an even layer.
Sprinkle the top with chopped walnuts and cinnamon. Chill for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
The best part of a tres leches cake, especially this one, is that you can make it ahead of time. Giving you more time to prep other Easter brunch or dinner dishes on the day of, without having to worry about the dessert as well. In fact, a cake like this gets better and better the longer it sits.
If you want to really go all out, you can portion out a bit of the topping into two bowls. Tint one with orange food coloring and the second with green. Then use decorating bags and tips to pipe out little decorative carrots on top, instead of the walnuts and cinnamon. Festive Easter or pastel sprinkles would also be great on top as well.
Depending on how “wet” you prefer your tres leches cakes, you might want to cut back or not on the tres leches soaking mixture. I like mine not so drenched that the cake falls apart but do like it when some of the cake isn’t fully saturated in the milks. I’ll leave it up to you to decide for yourself!
If you’re looking to switch things up in the dessert department this year for Easter, but are still looking for that classic carrot cake taste and feel, then this is the recipe for you. It’s new and exciting and I guarantee that everyone will love it! Give it a try and be sure to let me know what you think below!
Carrot Cake Tres Leches
Equipment
- Mixing Bowls
- whisk
- 9×13 inch baking pan
- Hand mixer or Stand mixer
Ingredients
Cake:
- 3/4 cup vegetable oil
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar divided
- 5 large egg yolks
- 1/4 cup whole milk
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground all-spice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 large egg whites
- 1 cup shredded carrot (about 2 medium)
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/2 cup roughly chopped walnuts
Milks:
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Topping:
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of salt
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoon chopped walnuts
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9x13inch baking pan. Set aside.
- For the cake, in a large bowl, beat together the oil, 1/2 cup sugar, and egg yolks until thick and well-combined. Stir in the milk, spices and orange zest until smooth. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and stir until just combined.
- In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites and remaining 1/4 cup sugar until stiff, glossy peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter, adding it in batches. Do not over mix at this stage or else the whites might deflate. Fold in the carrot, raisings and walnuts. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread out evenly. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick, inserted in the center, comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
- Use a chopstick or long skewer to poke holes all throughout the cooled cake. In a large measuring cup, whisk together the evaporated milk, condensed milk, heavy cream and vanilla extract. Pour this mixture completely over the top of the cake. Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 4 hours or overnight to allow the cake to soak up the milk mixture.
- To make the topping, in a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, vanilla and salt until creamy. Add the heavy cream and powdered sugar and beat until smooth and slightly thickened. Dollop over the cooled cake and spread out into an even layer. Sprinkle the top with chopped walnuts and cinnamon. Chill for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. Enjoy!
This cake looks yummy. Tell your mom Happy Birthday and Happy Easter. A few years ago Easter was on my husbands birthday. I got him a small cake with Easter picks and Happy Birthday written on it. At least you don’t have to think of your moms birthday and mother’s day at the same time like I do.
Thanks for sharing this! I get what you meant by “cutting back” some of the milks to preserve the integrity of the cake so it doesn’t fall apart, while having enough soak in. Does the amount of milk in recipe account for that? If not, how much of the milk mixture did you end up using to achieve that balance? 90%, 75%? Appreciate your advice!