Coquito Tres Leches

Yellow cake with white frosting on a grey plate. A glass of coquito is in the background.

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Hispanic, Latin American, Puerto Rican/Hispanic

Keyword: coquito, tres leches

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 15

soaking time: 6

Total Time: 6 30

Servings:

Calories: 616kcal

Author: Marta Rivera

Coquito Tres Leches is a light-as-air sponge cake soaked in the traditional Puerto Rican holiday coconut and rum cocktail.

Begin very early in the day or a day ahead for the best results.

Print Recipe

Equipment

9x13x3 inch cake pan (metal, glass or ceramic is best)
electric mixer
4 cups of prepared coquito

Ingredients

For the Rum Sponge Cake

1 1/2 cups (173 grams) cake flour sifted
6 large eggs cold
1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar separated
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 tablespoon (15 milliliers) dark rum (or rum or vanilla extract)
1/2 teaspoon (3 grams) kosher salt

For the Coquito Milk Mixture

4 cups (1 liter) prepared alcohol-free coquito *see notes to make quick coquito
1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) rum extract or vanilla extract
1 teaspoon (5 milliliters) cinnamon extract

For the Rum Whipped Cream

2 1/2 cups (625milliliters) heavy cream
1 teaspoon (5 milliliters) rum extract or dark rum
1 teaspoon (5 milliliters) cinnamon extract
1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar

Optional Garnishes

ground cinnamon for dusting on the frosted cake
shredded coconut

Instructions

Prepare the Sponge Cake Batter

Preheat your oven to 400°F.
Separate the egg whites from the yolks while the eggs are cold.
Place the egg whites into an extremely clean bowl.
Put the yolks in a larger bowl since that's where the batter begins and ends.
Now allow the eggs to warm up to room temperature.
Sift the cake flour two times to aerate it. Sifting your flours for cakes makes the cakes bake up light and fluffy. Set the cake flour aside for now.
Once the egg whites are at room temperature, begin whipping them with a hand mixer at 2nd speed.
Add the cream of tartar once the whites begin to foam up. Increase the mixing speed to 4 (or medium-high) and whip the whites for another 2-3 minutes or until the whites look milky.
Gradually sprinkle in 1/4 cup (50 grams) of sugar while whipping constantly.
After all the sugar is added, continue whipping the whites until they look snowy-white, which usually takes 6-7 minutes. The whites should hold a peak that stands straight out from the beaters.
Set the bowl aside.
Add the remaining 3/4 cup (150 grams) of sugar, the rum and the kosher salt to the bowl with the yolks.
Beat the mixture on high speed with an electric hand mixer for 3-4 minutes.
Stop the mixer and scrape down the beaters and the sides of the bowl.
Return the beaters to the bowl and whip for 2-3 minutes, or until the yolks are lemony yellow and the beaters leave a thick ribbon behind in the yolks as they pass through.
Begin by sifting half of the flour into the bowl with the whipped yolks. Use a large rubber spatula to gently fold the flour into the yolks.
Next, fold in half of the egg whites. Fold gently so as not to deflate the whites or the yolks.
Repeat the sifting of the remaining flour over the yolks, followed by gently folding in the last of the whites.

Bake, Then Cool the Sponge Cake in the Pan

Quickly pour the prepared batter into an ungreased 9 by 13-inch cake pan.
Place the pan into a preheated 400°F (204°C) oven and bake it for 15 minutes. Once baked, the cake will have risen and become a deep golden brown.
Remove the sponge cake from the oven and put it on a cooling rack, but allow it to cool completely in the pan until the dish and cake no longer feel hot on the top, sides, or bottom.
Cooling the cake usually takes 40-45 minutes.

Prepare the Coquito (If Needed) While the Cake Cools (See Notes if You Don't Have Prepared Coquito)

Whisk together the coquito, rum extract, and cinnamon extract the mixture is smooth and fluid.
Keep the mixture in the fridge for later.

Soak the Cooled Cake

Poke holes all over the cake using a wooden skewer or a toothpick after the cake is completely cool.
Use a paring knife to loosen the sides of the cake from the cake pan. Make sure the cake is completely cool before you do this.
Use a 1-cup ladle to pour the coquito tres leches over the baked cake.
Space out the pours in 10-minute increments to give the tres leches a chance to soak into the sponge cake. The cake will absorb the milk mixture, and you can continue to pour more on once it's no longer visible.
Bubbles will let you know that the coquito tres leches is being absorbed by the cake. Pour all of the milk over the cake.
Towards the end, puddles of milk will form on the sides of the pan. That's okay. The cake will continue to soak up the coquito tres leches as it chills in the fridge.
Cover the cake pan in aluminum foil and carefully transfer the dish to the fridge. Allow the coquito tres leches to soak into the cake for at least 6 hours. Overnight is preferred.
Keep the cake covered in the fridge until you're ready to frost it.

Prepare the Rum Whipped Cream

Add the heavy cream, rum extract, and cinnamon extract to a chilled metal bowl.
Whip the cream with an electric hand mixer on medium speed for 2 minutes.
Start sprinkling in the sugar once the beaters leave ribbons on the surface of the cream.
Increase the mixer's speed to high once all the sugar has been added, and whip for 2-3 more minutes or until the cream is fluffy and stiff.

Frost, Then Enjoy the Coquito Tres Leches

Frost the coquito tres leches at least 2 hours before you plan to serve it if you can using an offset spatula to spread the whipped cream onto the surface of the cake.
Lightly dust the coquito tres leches with ground cinnamon. Garnish with coconut flakes, if desired.
Refrigerate the Coquito Tres Leches until you're ready to serve it.
Slice the coquito tres leches into squares and serve it on its own or with a glass of coquito or café con leche.
Enjoy within 3 days of soaking.

Notes

Quick Coquito Recipe:

1 12 ounce-can (354 milliliters) evaporated milk
1 14-ounce can (396 grams) sweetened condensed milk
1 13.5-ounce can (400 milliliters) coconut milk
1/2 cup (120 milliliters) rum (for adult cake) or coconut water or water (for kid's cake)
1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) rum extract or rum
1 teaspoon (2 grams) ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (1 gram) ground nutmeg
pinch of allspice
1. Add all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl.
2. Use an immersion blender to blend them, or you can do this in a blender.
3. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Swaps and Substitutions:

Replace the rum in any of the components with rum extract, vanilla extract, or cinnamon extract.
To make a dairy-free coquito tres leches cake, replace the evaporated milk with another can of coconut milk and the sweetened condensed milk with sweetened condensed coconut milk.
Use a dairy-free whipped topping in place of the whipped cream topping.

Tips and Techniques:

Avoid using non-stick cake pans for this recipe. They also hinder the cake from gripping the sides. Ungreased, ceramic, glass or metal pans are best.
Poking big holes in your sponge cake causes your tres leches cake to break apart when you serve it.
Soaking the cake for at least 6 hours allows the cake to absorb that coquito tres leches mixture fully.
If you can't spare the 2-hour advanced frosting, frost the coquito tres leches whenever possible.

Storage Instructions:

Because this is a dairy-laden cake, you must store coquito tres leches in the refrigerator at all times unless you're serving it.
Store coquito tres leches in a covered container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Avoid keeping coquito tres leches at room temperature for a long time since it contains so much dairy.
You can press a piece of plastic wrap or wax paper against any cut sides to keep it from drying out in the fridge.
You can cover it after cutting it if you opt not to press anything against the interior.

Freezer Instructions:

To freeze prepared coquito tres leches:
1. Wrap the cake dish in a couple layers of plastic wrap before you freeze it, and make sure the pan you're freezing it in is freezer-safe.
2. Freeze the cake for 2 months.
3. Thaw the coquito tres leches in the refrigerator overnight, then cut and serve.

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