Apologies in advance for the overload of pictures in this post, but I just adore this vegan tres leches cake and had a tough time choosing my favorite shots! This is my dairy-free spin on the classic cake.
I’ll address the elephant in the room first: vegan tres leches cake is a pretty ridiculous sounding name considering that the crucial component of standard tres leches cakes is a mixture of 3 different forms of dairy. But then again, I think it’s also ridiculous to ask me to name this Vegan Sponge Cake With A Sweetened Non-Dairy Beverage Mixture Poured Over The Top. So we’re going with vegan tres leches.
Phew. Now that I’ve preemptively addressed the haters who will urge me to choose a different name for the recipe, I can tell you all about this glorious cake. Traditional tres leches was undoubtedly one of my favorite sweets before I went dairy-free. So I’ve eaten a fair number of these in my day, and I will honestly tell you that I think this vegan version is just as good, if not better.
It starts with a basic vegan vanilla sponge cake. I merged a couple of different recipes that I found online, and then reduced the sugar and liquid to arrive at my final version. That’s because after the cake cools, we poke a bunch of little holes in it and pour a mixture of vegan sweetened condensed milk and coconut milk over the top and let the cake soak up all of that goodness.
You can also whip up the rest of the coconut cream as additional topping if you like. I just like my cake served with some fresh berries. (Or a tiny bit of rice whip, pictured). It’s already super sweet and moist even without frosting or cream on top. Up to you!
SO MOIST. Sorry, I know a lot of people hate that word.
Enjoy this vegan tres leches cake for Cinco de Mayo, or anytime! Personally I’m gonna have to make yet another one, because this entire thing was gone in 36 hours. No clue where it went. I definitely did not skip all of my regular meals that day. Also, this is my official acknowledgement that the amount of sugary cake recipes in general lately has been too damn high. More fresh veggies coming to you very soon 🙂
If you make this vegan tres leches cake, let me know! Leave a comment, or tag me on Instagram with #yupitsvegan and @yupitsvegan. Happy baking!
Vegan Tres Leches Cake
Ingredients
For the sponge cake:
- 1 cup plain, unsweetened soy milk
- 2 tsp apple cider vinegar (or other vinegar)
- 170 g all-purpose flour (1 and 1/2 cups)
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil (coconut oil is not recommended)
- 2/3 cup cane sugar (or use coconut sugar, cake will have a darker color)
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
For the soaking syrup:
- 1 cup vegan sweetened condensed milk
- 1 14- oz . can full-fat coconut milk , refrigerated overnight
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, stir together the soy milk and apple cider vinegar.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and lightly grease an 8-by-8 or 7-by-11 inch baking dish.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- To the bowl with the soy milk, add the oil, sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Whisk well to combine. Stir in the dry mixture and mix until no lumps remain.
- Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. (Wait until at least 20 minutes have passed before opening the oven door at all). The 7-by-11 cake size takes around 30 minutes to bake, and the 8-by-8 size takes around 35 minutes.
- Let the cake cool for at least an hour. (You could potentially prepare the sweetened condensed milk while the cake bakes and cools). Using a chopstick, skewer, or a toothpick in a pinch, poke holes throughout the cake, spaced about 1/2 inch apart. The distance isn't very important, just make to poke lots of holes all over.
- Retrieve the coconut milk from the refrigerator and gently scoop out the cream on top. Either turn this into coconut whip to top the cake if you like, or reserve it for another use (curry, etc.). Take the rest of the liquid from the can and mix it together with the sweetened condensed milk. Pour this milk mixture over the top of the cake. You'll need to do it in several stages, waiting in between for the cake to soak up the milk. When the cake is pretty much saturated with the milk, you're done - you may or may not need all of it.
- This cake is best served cold, so if you have time, refrigerate it. However, it still tastes pretty darn good if you eat it right away 🙂 leftovers will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge.
Notes
Nutrition
Adapted from: AllRecipes and The Witchy Kitchen
I'm Shannon, the writer and photographer of Yup, it's Vegan! I'm a morning person based in Baltimore, USA. My mission is to create healthy plant-based recipes that anyone would enjoy, using seasonal produce with inspiration from global flavors.
Grace says
My family loved this recipe, and they’re not even vegan!
Quick question, why do I need to separate the coconut cream from the liquid coconut milk?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
I’m glad you loved it! If you don’t separate out the liquid, the mixture will be too thin and watery.
Jessica says
I think I might be confused. It sounds like the instructions say to remove the thick cream from the can and use that elsewhere and to use the liquid that’s left behind for the syrup. But in your comment above you say if you don’t separate out the liquid it will be too thin and watery. Do you use the thick cream for the syrup or the remaining liquid?
Tammy O’Brien says
Do you use the coconut fat from the can? Or the liquid? You say it will be too watery if you don’t separate it, but that makes zero sense. Not separating it would make it thicker. Im confused.
Terri S says
My husband and I loved this cake! It was delicious and moist. We topped it with coco whip and strawberries for a perfect dessert.
Sandra Grohovaz says
What a hit this was. I should have made 2 (lesson learnt lol). Great job on this recipe and thank you. I made it with Gluten Free flour blend (which contains all the binders: arrowroot powder, potato starch, tapioca starch, guar gum) and it turned out fantastic. It was well raised and fluffy and puffy and moist. Perfection. Wanted to let you know in case anyone else who is Gluten Free is wanting to know. Thanks for a great addition to my cakes recipes.
Joanne says
Which gluten free flour blend do you use? Is it store bought or homemade?
Sandra says
I used Pamela’s All Purpose.
Sandra Grohovaz says
Pamela’s All Purpose flour.
Patty says
I made this last night with Arrowhead All Purpose GF flour and it was not good at all – we ended up throwing it out. The milk also did not soak through. It just tasted like flour, so I’m guessing it was the Arrowhead. I made it just like the recipe asked for with no other subs but the flour. Did you skip the baking powder and baking soda?
Ann says
Try using Aldi’s Gluten Free Vanilla cake mix. It’s quite honestly the best. I do t even attempt to make cakes from GF flour any more.
Daniel says
Batter was delicious so I know the cake will be yummy on it’s own. Refrigerated to full fat coconut milk overnight. It became ALL cream. Heating it up hoping it will have some sort or liquidyness to soak into the cake. This normal?
Genevie says
I love this cake! The issue I’m having is that I can’t seem to get it to absorb the milk, it’s like it s too thick? Any idea of what I could be doing wrong?
Sandra Grohovaz says
Is it overcooked and thus too dense? Are the holes big enough….(mine soaked up the milk, but next time I’m going to use a chopstick so the holes are a bit bigger)?
Sarah says
Sounds delicious! Can I substitute apple sauce for the oil?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Nope, that will not work
Agata says
I’ve made this cake a few times now and I’m absolutely addicted to it!
Bria G says
I want to make this for Thanksgiving, so I’d love to add pumpkin puree to the cake for an autumnal twist. Any suggestion on how much puree to add/which existing ingredients to replace with it? Thanks!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Sorry, I have no idea about that. I think it would affect the cake a lot to add pumpkin puree. My honest suggestion would be to make some kind of pumpkin flavored frosting or whipped cream for the top instead.
Yasmine says
Hi! I\d like to make the recipe, but I am not sure what you mean with 1 14- oz . can full-fat coconut milk. Do you mean 1.14oz or 114oz? I am in Europe, therefore I’d be happy to know what it is in grams/ml 🙂
Thank you!
Julia says
Hi! They mean 1 can that is typically 14 oz. 😊
Mariel Montiel says
Has anyone used AP gluten free flour for this recipe?
D says
Do not use flax seed flour for this. Does not give the cake the texture for soaking.
Melina says
Hi, Is there something I can use instead of the full fat coconut milk? I’m not the biggest fan of coconut flavored foods. Or will it not really taste like coconut?
Hadassah says
10/10!! I didn’t have vanilla extract but it still turned out phenomenal!
Brenda says
I made this cake and it’s delicious. It tastes like a milk tres leches cake. The only thing that I need to improve is getting a more spongy cake, so the milk can be absorbed easily. I follow the recipe to make the tres leches mix but it came out very thick, so I had to add some almond milk to make it thinner. Then, the milk penetrated better, but next time I would modify a little bit the tres leches mix, so the cake is wetter. However, I still loved it and the taste was great.
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Brenda, just so you know, the cake is purposefully thick, it’s on purpose so that it bakes up on the dry side and can absorb more liquid. I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Novata Baker says
This cake was so delicious and a hit with my girls. I dont know what I did wrong though because it did not absorb the milk… maybe I didn’t let it sit long enough before refrigerating? Any suggestions or tips will be greatly appreciates as I would love to make this again with my girls.
Rachel Engelsman says
Does replacing all purpose flour with almond flour make this gluten free?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
It would be gluten-free but I don’t think that would be very good. You would need to use a blend of gluten-free flours and starches to replace the AP flour in this cake, or just use a gluten-free AP flour blend
Gabby says
Hi! This recipe sounds delicious! I had a question about the sugar. I’m not quite the baker, so I was wondering what you meant by “cane sugar.” Do you mean white granulated sugar or brown sugar?
Thank you in advance for answering my newbie question! 🙂
Gabby
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Granulated sugar would be the equivalent 🙂
Mary says
Amazing recipe!! My fiance and I loved it and I’ll be making it again for my mom’s birthday.
Thank you!
Michele says
If I’m making this the day before is it best to only add the milk sauce the day of or do everything the day before and let it have the extra time to soak in?
G2 says
Substituted rose Essence and added cardamom to condensed milk and decorated cake with pink coconut cream and rose petals and it came out beautiful and delicious!
Jeanell says
I made the cake and turned out delicious, but the syrup sat on top and didn’t penetrate the sponge. I let the cake cool completely before poking the holes. How can I fix this for next time? Thank you!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Sounds like you may need to bake the cake for longer, or perhaps the flour in the cake was under measured? Just some ideas, if the cake is too moist on its own it won’t absorb as much liquid. You could also poke more, but smaller, holes and be sure to poke them deep into the cake. Sorry I can’t be of more help.
Trishna says
Hi!
I am so so excited to try this out for my boyfriend’s birthday soon as he previously had wanted a tres leches cake (as a one-time cheat!) but we have recently doubled down on our commitment to veganism.
Do you have any tips to making this a layered cake – either 2 or 3 layers? I’ve never made any kind of tres leches cake so I’m not sure if that’s even possible with the need to soak each layer.
Thanks!
Jessica says
Awesome! Just made it tonight, and I’m having difficulty not having more than at taste! I made a very simple vegan condensed milk using one can full-fat coconut milk and 1/3 cup sugar, simmered down for 45 minutes, and it was DELICIOUS – a great alternative if you don’t want to mess with the macadamia nuts. I also added generous sprinkles of cinnamon on top of the cake and between layers of the poured milk mixture. I think next time I might mix the cinnamon right in with the condensed/evaporated milks. Will definitely be making it again.
Adriana says
Hiii I love all your savory recipes I’m always looking to make different ones.
I’m trying to make this for my mom but she needs it to be gluten free, how would you substitute all purpose flour for almond flour or coconut flour???
Thank you so much!
Kari says
The chef posted earlier to use gluten free flour.
Jennifer says
Hi there! I am wanting to make this tomorrow and hoping to have number 5 on the instructions clarified:
“Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. (Wait until at least 20 minutes have passed before opening the oven door at all). The 7-by-11 cake size takes around 30 minutes to bake, and the 8-by-8 size takes around 35 minutes.”
By waiting 20min to open the oven door after baking till done, does this mean the cake is really baking for 50-55min? OR does this mean to keep the oven door closed for at least 20min before putting the cake in the oven to make sure the corn temperature is consistent? OR does this mean to not check the cake for at least 20mins once it is in so as not to disturb the rising?
Thank you so much for your help :).
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Hi Jennifer, it’s the very last thing you mentioned. Do not disturb the rising of the cake by opening the oven door for the first 20min of baking. Hope you enjoy the cake!
Rose says
Making this tomorrow I can’t wait!!!!!
Rose says
This cake was absolutely perfect!!!! I topped it with strawberries nothing else!!!! Will definitely make again! Thank you!!
Janeth says
Hi, just made mine followed all the instruction but seems too small of a cake 😩 can I double the ingredients next time ??? And still use the same size pan and time ?
Rosario muga says
Hi! You didn’t specify when to add sugar, but I’m just going to add it on the dry mix.
Thank you
Rosario muga says
Never mind, I just saw it! Sorry
Mai-Li says
Hi there! I was able to find vegan evaporated milk. Do you think I can use that instead of the coconut milk in the soaking syrup?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Sure if you would like!
Sharon says
What can I use instead of coconut milk? I can’t use coconut products.
Hadassah says
You might have to make your own sweetened condensed milk using soy milk! You should be able to replace the coconut milk with unsweetened soy milk as well.
Lauren Bridgman-Fralin says
Can I replace the condensed milk with a can of condensed coconut milk?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
Absolutely!
Sabrina says
The soy milk I found was unsweetened, but still had flavor (vanilla). Do you think this will work or should I try to find the unflavored stuff?
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
That should be fine!
Jennifer says
I’m allergic to almonds. Do you think skipping the almond extract will change the taste a ton or is there a substitute that I should do? I wasn’t sure since I’m not too sure on what almonds taste like haha!
Shannon @ Yup, it's Vegan says
You can definitely just skip the almond extract! Not a big deal.
Liz says
I baked this and topped it with coconut cream frosting and fruit and it was so freaking delicious! Even my family members said it might even be better than the local bakery that has been making tres leches cakes for our birthdays for at least 10 years now! So amazing, most definitely my favorite cake and I highly recommend you make it for any tres leches lover!!!