Chocolate Tres Leches Cake

This chocolate tres leches cake is a decadent yet light chocolate cake soaked in a chocolate three-milk mixture and topped with an airy chocolate whipped cream. This easy-to-make cake uses a box mix for convenience but tastes homemade. Chocolate lovers, this one’s for you!

Reader Ali says: “This is one of my favorite recipes! The cake is moist & flavorful. The whipped topping is light, but adds such a sweet finish to the cake with the cocoa powder. Every time I make this for someone, they rant & rave about it! It’s such a crowd pleaser. Be prepared for people to fight over leftovers!” ★★★★★

For the longest time, I’ve only made my traditional Tres Leches Cake, and it’s been a family favorite. But once I started trying different flavor combinations, I couldn’t stop! Here’s what I’ve made- Pumpkin, Strawberry, and now Chocolate. I think they are all delicious, but this chocolate version is now my favorite!

Ingredients

Just like my other tres leches cake, I’m using a box cake mix for convenience, but making some swaps to enhance the flavor.

• Devil’s Food cake mix– You can use any chocolate box cake mix, but I love the rich chocolate taste and lighter texture of Devil’s Food cake mix.
• Eggs– Use 3 eggs for the cake mix ingredients.
• Butter– The cake mix calls for oil, but I like to use melted unsalted butter.
• Whole milk– The box cake mix calls for water, but I replace it with 1 cup of milk. You will need an additional 6 ounces of whole milk for the tres leches mixture.
• Sweetened condensed milk– This is the second milk in the mixture, it’s a thicker sweet milk.
• Evaporated milk– This is the third milk in the milk mixture and adds creaminess and has a slight sweetness.
• Heavy cream– This will be used for the homemade whipped cream topping, along with sugar and vanilla extract. You can substitute store-bought Cool Whip if you like.
• Cocoa Powder– We’re using cocoa powder in the tres leches mixture and in the whipped cream frosting for a balanced chocolate taste throughout the cake.

Preparing the Cake

Start by greasing just the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Then make the box cake mix, but substitute one stick of melted butter for the oil, and 1 cup of whole milk for the water. Add the 3 eggs and mix with an eletric mixer for 2 minutes. Pour the batter into the pan and bake at 350°F for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Allow the cake to cool for about 15 minutes. While the cake is cooling, combine the evaporated, sweetened condensed, and remaining whole milk in a large measuring cup. Add the cocoa powder, and if you like, cinnamon. Whisk until combined.

Once the cake has cooled, use a fork or skewer to poke holes all over the cake. Slowly pour the milk mixture evenly on top of the cake, allowing it to soak in before adding more. You can also reserve some of the milk mixture to add when serving the cake, but this time I added the entire chocolate tres leches mixture to the cake.

Cover the cake with plastic wrap or a lid and refrigerate overnight or at least 4 hours.

How to Serve and Store

Before serving the chocolate tres leches cake, make a homemade chocolate whipped cream, or use a store-bought one, like Cool Whip.

Place your bowl and whisk attachment in the freezer for a few minutes. Add the heavy cream, vanilla, cocoa powder, and sugar to the bowl. Whisk at medium to high speed until stiff peaks form. Add the whipped cream to the cake and spread evenly. Use a fine sifter to dust the cake with more cocoa powder or chocolate shavings.

This chocolate tres leches cake is best served the same day the chocolate whipped topping is added. Since the whipped cream is not stabilized, the consistency will get runny the longer it sits in the refrigerator. If you do have leftovers, you can refrigerate the cake for up to 2 days.

If you reserved some of the tres leches mixture, then you can have your guests add more if they like to their plate. This cake is perfect for parties, potlucks, or gatherings with friends who love chocolate!

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