Imagine picking up your fork, and the golden hue and lucious whipped cream topping of a tres leches cake pulls you in as you lean in for a second bite. You take the first bite, and you are greeted with a moist and delectable texture. The sweet blend of three milks dances on your tongue, and the aroma of sweet cream fills your nose.

The culinary history of this mouth-watering treat has some religious symbolism with the three milks representing the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit during religious celebrations such as Christmas and Easter. A cherished indulgence in Latin American households, tres leches has been lovingly passed down through generations as a traditional recipe. With its origins in Nicaraguan and Mexican tradition, the prominence of tres leches cake today expands far beyond Latin America as a delectable dessert that has captivated taste buds all over with its varieties of flavors such as cinnamon, coconut and even chocolate.

Indeed, it is a buen trato para fiestas for all palates.

Tres leches is what my grandmother calls “milk cake,” a treat which holds a special place in her heart and in her Puerto Rican taste buds as a symbol of love and unity for a variety of celebrations. This dessert is loved for bringing families together and creating memories. Passed down through generations, the recipe for tres leches is often a treasured secret with many families adding their own unique touches, but the result is always incredibly rich, thanks to the three milks—condensed, evaporated and regular dairy— used in the preparation.

“There is no other way to describe the taste of a tres leches cake–it’s simply sweet on sweet on sweet,” said my mother.

“This cake is like no cake I’ve ever tasted,” said a student tasting for the first time. “It’s so milky and sweet and so unique,” said a student.

My own Puerto Rican family eats this tres leches cake recipe, courtesy of my mom and mi abuela, on a myriad of occasions.

My own father shares his pride in watching me make the cake.

“It makes me so proud to watch you make something that many girls from Puerto Rico before have made in the kitchen with their mothers and grandmothers,” he said.

Ingredients:

• Golden butter batter mix (available at your local grocery story)
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup of water
• ⅓ cup of unsalted butter
• Strawberries, cinnamon, chocolate, whatever you would like to add.
• The Tres Leches: Condensed milk (1 can), evaporated milk (1 can), and 1 cup regular milk (simply fill one of the empty cans for ease of measurement of the regular milk).

Directions:

Step 1: Get a large bowl and pour in golden butter batter mix.

Step 2: Crack three eggs into the golden butter batter

Step 3: Put in one cup of water

Step 4: Put 1/3 of butter

Step 5: Mix until it’s a goldish color

Step 6: Pour into a pan and put it in the oven at 250 F for about 45 minutes 

Step 7: Once it’s out of the oven, let the pan cool and then poke holes all over.

Step 8: In another bowl, pour a can of condensed milk, evaporated milk and a cup of regular milk (measured in an empty can) and mix well. 

Step 9: It is optional to, at this step, add anything you would like. (Cinnamon is always a common choice though.) Lightly pour the milk mixture on top of the cake in a back and forth motion. Lastly, add some whipped cream all over and mi familia puts strawberries on top.

Step 10: Enjoy.