Mexican tres leches cake with sprinkles: Pastel de tres leches con chispas

Karen Hursh Graber

Called chispas, chispitas, or in some places just the English “sprinkles,” these colored decorations are fun and festive. They add pizzaz to that favorite Mexican cake — pastel de tres leches.

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 1 ½ cups flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ½ cup milk

For the three-milk topping:

• 1 can evaporated milk
• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup heavy cream

For whipped topping:

• 2 cups heavy cream
• ½ cup sugar
• colored sprinkles for decorating

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Butter a 9×13 inch rectangular baking pan.

In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. In a mixing bowl, beat the sugar, eggs and vanilla together until light and fluffy. Beat in half the flour mixture, then the milk, then the remaining flour mixture.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until the cake springs back when touched. Cool cake on a rack for 30 minutes.

Beat the evaporated milk, condensed milk, and 1 cup heavy cream in a blender on high speed. Using a fork, poke holes in the top of the cake. Pour the three-milk mixture slowly over all, so that it seeps into the cake. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours, or overnight.

Whip the 2 cups heavy cream with an electric mixer, adding sugar gradually once the cream begins to stiffen. Remove the cake from the refrigerator and spread the whipped cream over the top. Decorate with colored sprinkles strewn all over.

Makes 12 servings.