Tres Leches Cake Recipe

Get ready to indulge in a slice of pure bliss with our Tres Leches Cake recipe, infused with the rich and aromatic flavors of Thandai. This delightful dessert combines the lusciousness of a classic Tres Leches Cake with the traditional Indian essence of Thandai, resulting in a treat that’s sure to tantalize your taste buds.

To create the perfect Thandai Cake sponge, we’ll be combining simple yet essential ingredients like all-purpose flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, milk, oil, yogurt, and a generous tablespoon of Thandai powder for that unmistakable flavor. But wait, there’s more! We’ll also whip up a decadent Thandai Milk mixture, featuring whole milk, Thandai powder, and a touch of sweetness from sugar.

Now, let’s talk about the pièce de résistance: the whipped cream filling and decoration. With just heavy whipping cream, confectioner’s sugar, saffron-infused milk, crushed pistachios, and edible rose petals, we’ll elevate our Tres Leches Cake to new heights of decadence and elegance.

Whether you’re celebrating a special occasion or simply craving a slice of something sweet, our Tres Leches Cake with Thandai infusion is guaranteed to impress. So, roll up your sleeves, preheat your oven, and let’s embark on a culinary adventure that blends the best of both worlds. Get ready to savor every divine bite of this exquisite dessert! 🍰✨

My take on Tres Leches Cake

I love to make Indian fusion food, especially desserts. Therefore, I decided to make this Thandai-flavored Tres Leches Cake for the Indian festival of Holi.

You must be wondering what ‘Thandai’ is. Read on to know more.

What is Thandai?

The one food/drink that I most associate with the festival Holi is Thandai.  Growing up, I remember my mom making jugs of thandai on the days leading up to Holi.  I did not appreciate the somewhat spicy flavor of the drink then but have come to love it now! It is refreshing, a little spicy with lovely color and a perfect drink to celebrate Holi and welcome Spring. 

What is Tres Leches Cake?

Tres Leches is a popular Latin American dessert that is served in a lot of Mexican restaurants.  Tres Leches literally means “3 milks”.  It is made of a yellow cake sponge that is perforated and drizzled with 3 milks- evaporated milk, condensed milk, and whole milk or heavy cream.  The top is decorated with a whipped cream frosting. It is moist and rich with a very luxurious flavor. 

For my version of the Thandai Tres Leches Cake, we are going to drizzle the cake with Thandai milk instead of the 3 milks; so moist with wonderful Thandai flavors.

Ingredients you’ll need to make Tres Leches Cake

Ingredients to make the Thandai Cake sponge:

• 1 ½ cups All Purpose Flour
• 3/4 cup White Sugar
• ½ tsp Baking Soda
• 1 ½ tsp Baking Powder
• ¾ cup milk
• 1/3 cup of any unflavored oil
• ½ cup yogurt (whisked)
• 1 tablespoon thandai powder (from thandai milk recipe below)
• ¼ tsp salt

Ingredients to make Thandai Milk:

• 3 cups whole milk
• 3 tablespoons thandai powder (homemade or store-bought)
• 6 tablespoons sugar

Ingredients to make Whipped cream filling and decoration:

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• ¼ cup confectioner’s sugar
• Pinch of saffron mixed in 2 tablespoons warm milk
• Crushed pistachios
• Edible Rose petals

How to make homemade Thandai Powder

Yes, you can buy pre-made Thandai syrups and mixes but homemade is so much better and it hardly takes much effort to prepare.

This recipe is from my dear Aunty Urvashi Thacker. What I like about this recipe is that it is simple and does not use a ton of ingredients. 

• ½ cup raw unsalted almonds (or a mix of pistachio/almond)
• 1/3 cup fennel seeds (saunf)
• 2 tbsp black peppers
• 2 tbsp cardamom seeds

Add all the ingredients to a spice grinder and grind to a smooth powder. The Thandai dry mix powder can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.  Use the directions in the recipe card below to make Thandai milk. 

How to make Tres Leches Cake in 5 steps

Step 1 – Make the Thandai Milk

To make Thandai milk heat all the ingredients together, bring to a boil, and add a few strands of saffron.  Cool completely and refrigerate. 

Step 2 – Bake the Cake

For this cake, we are going to flavor it with Thandai flavors using the dry mix powder. Again, you can make the dry mix powder with my recipe above or you can buy store bought powder.  I have not used Thandai syrup to bake the cake, so cannot tell you if that would change anything. 

In the pictures, I have used a Charlotte bundt pan by Nordicware but you can easily bake and decorate the cake in an 8-9 inch round pan.  The exact baking time and directions in the recipe card below are for an 8-inch round pan. 

Step 3 – Soak the cake in Thandai Milk

To add the Tres Leches element to the Thandai cake, we are going to drizzle the Thandai milk made earlier on top of the cake.

Step 4 – Make the whipped cream frosting and decorate the cake

The cake is simply decorated with a fresh saffron whipped cream frosting.  The frosting is flavored with saffron to give it a nice yellow tinge.  I have used pistachios and edible rose petals to decorate the cake but you can also use almonds slivers, saffron, or cardamom powder. 

Step 5 – Serve the cake

Cut wedges of the cake and serve on a plate with additional Thandai milk. 

Make ahead and storage tips for Thandai Tres Leches Cake

The cake sponge can be made 2-3 days in advance, cooled completely, and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  The Thandai Milk can be made a day in advance and stored in the refrigerator.  On the day of serving the cake, proceed with soaking the cake in the thandai milk, making the whipped cream, and decorating it.  Since the cake contains milk and whipped cream, it should always be stored in a refrigerator. 

FAQs – Tres Leches Cake

Other Indian fusion desserts to try

Recipe Card – Tres Leches Cake