Tres Leches Cake is in my list of favorite cakes of all time. I would have said that Tres Leches is in my Top 20, but that sounds a bit gluttonous, doesn’t it? I can’t narrow the list down to a manageable five because, come on, it changes depending on the time of the month, you know.

Tres Leches translates to “three milks,” sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream. These milks, along with rum, make up a sticky sweet syrup that get poured over a simple, somewhat dry, sponge cake that soaks it all up. When it’s all said and done, Tres Leches cake is not pretty. It weeps the sticky milk syrup from underneath, and when you cut or bite into it, the cake falls apart and oozes milk syrup all over the plate, your chin, the front of your shirt. A delicious, but very worth the drycleaning, mess.

Typically, the cake is made in a 9x13” rectangular pan, but I made them into cupcakes so I could restrict myself to just one. Otherwise, I’d eat the whole damn thing.

Preheat oven to 350

Make sponge cake batter:

Beat 6 large egg whites until foamy, then add 1½ c. sugar, then 6 large egg yolks one at time.

Sift 1½ c flour with 1 T. baking powder.

Fold flour into eggs, alternating with ½ c. milk.

Pour batter into muffin tin lined with cupcake liners about 2/3 full. Don’t go too low because the cake doesn’t rise as much as other cakes, but don’t go too far over either because the wicked little things will spread out over the muffin and tin and stick like the Dickens.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until they’re done.

While the cake is baking, combine 1 can sweetened condensed milk, 1 can evaporated milk, 1 c. heavy cream and ¼ c. rum of any kind.

Remove cupcakes from oven, and poke all over with a thin chopstick or skewer. Slowly spoon rum-milk over hot cupcakes allowing them to soak it up. I poured by the teaspoonful, about 5 teaspoons for each cupcake. Allow cupcakes to soak and cool for at least 4 to 6 hours.

Top cupcakes with lightly sweetened whipped cream. (Traditionally, the frosting is a meringue, but raw egg white scare me).