Like other pioneers before her, our friend Sue had a dream.
In this dream, there was delicious Tres Leches cake, moist and rich.
But unlike a traditional Tres Leches, there was an ingredient that made made the cake even better.
That ingredient? Chocolate.
¡Hola, Tres Cocoas Leches!
If you've never had a Tres Leches cake, it's made with "three milks" -- typically, regular milk, condensed milk and cream. In the case of this recipe, the dish calls for evaporated milk, condensed milk and heavy cream.
Sue's take on this cake, incorporating chocolate, adds a new level of decadence. When she told us about what she wanted to make and offered to bring it to our Easter brunch, we were super excited. How on Earth have we never heard of a chocolate version of this Latin American dessert??
Fortunately (or unfortunately?) for us, there was a hefty portion of cake left over, which we've been nibbling on all this week. The best part is that this cake has gotten better by the day.
Word of warning: We're going with a cake mix here, as Sue did when she made the cake. We don't typically use pre-made mixes. But after you make this cake, you'll see why we wouldn't dream of objecting.
This cake is amazingly, stunningly delicious -- dense and moist and rich, with three kinds of chocolate oozing out of the whole zjkldfor!!oihdgfdzg////..........
Oh, sorry. We're back. We got a little lost in all the chocolate decadence.
And you will too.
Tres Cocoas Leches Cake
Directions adapted from Sue, friend of The Bitten Word
For best results, Tres Cocoas Leches Cake should be made one day prior to serving.
Cake
Make a Devil's Food Cake per the package instructions, in a 9x13 pan (baking 30-35 minutes at 350).
Remove the cake from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes. Using skewers or a sharp knife, poke holes over the top of the cake at 1-inch intervals.
While the cake is cooling, make the cream topping (below).
Cream Topping
5 ounces unsweetened baker's chocolate
1 14-ounce can evaporated milk
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
Melt chocolate in a double boiler. Once the chocolate is melted, slowly add the evaporated milk, the condensed milk and the cream, whisk as ingredients are added, until combined.
While cake is still warm, pour the cream topping over the cake and let it cool several hours, or overnight, before serving. Cake will absorb the cream mixture. Immediately before serving, top with whipped topping (below).
Whipped Topping
1 cup cream
2 tbsp cocoa powder, plus more for dusting
2 tbsp sugar
Whip cream. Stir in cocoa and sugar. Top the cake with the whipped cream and dust with more cocoa powder.
