Homemade vanilla cupcakes with three kinds of milk soaked in giving you the moistest cupcakes ever! EASY to make and the buttercream frosting adds the perfect light touch to these AUTHENTIC tasting cupcakes!
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time20 minutesmins
Additional Time30 minutesmins
Total Time1 hourhr10 minutesmins
Course: Cakes & Cupcakes
Cuisine: Mexican
Keyword: best tres leches cupcakes recipe, easy tres leches cupcakes, how to make tres leches cupcakes, individual tres leches cupcakes, tres leches cupcakes, tres leches cupcakes recipe
Servings: 12
Calories: 754kcal
Author: Averie Sunshine
Ingredients
Cupcake Batter
¾cupunsalted butter
⅔cupgranulated sugar
⅓cuplight brown sugarpacked
3large eggsseparated
1cupof 2% or whole milk
1 ½teaspoonsvanilla extract
1cupall-purpose floursifted
1teaspoonbaking powder
½teaspoonsalt
¼teaspoonbaking soda
Three Milks Mixture:
½cupevaporated milk
½cupsweetened condensed milk
½cupheavy cream
Buttercream Frosting
1 ½cupsunsalted buttersoftened
6cupsconfectioners' sugarsifted
1teaspoonvanilla exract
½teaspoonsalt
3tablespoonsheavy cream
Strawberriesor raspberries, blackberries, blueberries optional for garnishing
To the bowl of a stand mixer, or large bowl and handheld electric mixer, add the butter, sugars, and egg yolks on high speed until whipped and yellow. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add the 2% or whole milk, vanilla, and beat to combine. Scrape down the sides of the bowl; set aside.
In a separate medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and then add the dry ingredients mixture to the wet mixture, and beat to incorporate but don't overmix; set aside.
To a separate large bowl, add the egg whites* (See Notes for Tips on Separating Eggs), and using clean and dry beaters, beat the whites on high speed until stiff peaks form, but they aren't dry. Tips - Make sure that NO egg yolks are in the whites or they won't whip up well. And make sure to use clean, dry beaters and bowl.
Gently fold in the egg whites into the cupcake batter using a large rubber spatula. Do not stir aggressively, this is a gently folding in, turning over the batter with your spatula, over and over, until the whites have folded in.
Fill each cupcake liner 3/4-full with batter and bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. Rotate pan midway through baking for even cooking.
Poke the cupcakes with a toothpick after they come out of the oven, going down about halfway, and poking them in about 10 spots each; set aside.
Three Milks - To a large measuring cup or bowl, add the 3 milks, and stir to combine.
Gently, slowly, and evenly pour the milk mixture over the cupcakes, allowing a bit of time for it to soak in, and going back and repeating as necessary until it's all been used. Note - The mixture will continue to absorb for a few hours after it's been poured in so it's best to make these cupcakes at least a few hours in advance. Make sure the cupcakes have completely cooled before frosting them.
Buttercream Frosting
To the bowl of a stand mixer, or large bowl and handheld electric mixer, add the butter and beat on high speed until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add the confectioners' sugar, vanilla, salt, and slowly drizzle in the heavy cream, stopping after 2 tablespoons. Beat on low speed and gradually increase the speed to high, and beat for a few minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add the remaining tablespoon of cream, and continue to beat until the frosting is light and fluffy. If necessary for consistency, add a bit more cream as needed.
If desired, you can simply spoon on or dollop on the frosting. I transferred the frosting into a piping bag and with a 1M tip, piped it on to each cupcake.
Optionally garnish with strawberries or other berries before serving.
Notes
*Make sure that you don't get any egg yolks in the egg whites. Egg whites won't beat well or whip up into stiff peaks if there is yolk in them. To guard against this, I always crack eggs when I need to separate them into a small bowl. I then pluck the yolk out with my fingers and set it aside where it needs to be. In this case, the main mixing bowl.Then I repeat the process with the remaining eggs, always cracking into a small separate bowl and not the main mixing bowl in case you get a yolk that breaks. I find it easier to just grab the yolk with my fingers and pull it out than try to be fancy and "pass" back and forth the yolk between two neatly broken eggshells like you would see on a cooking show. Storage: Cupcakes will keep airtight at room temp for up to 24 hours or airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days.