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Lemon Meringue Tres Leches

Vanilla cake soaked in three milks, topped with a vibrant citrus lemon curd and a toasted meringue.
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Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 50 minutes
Total Time 4 hours
Servings 16 servings

Ingredients
  

For the Cake:

  • 3⅔ cups (450g) cake flour
  • 2¼ cups (480g) granulated sugar
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1½ cups whole milk
  • 8 egg whites
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 16 tbsp (2 sticks) (226g) unsalted butter at room temperature

For the Milk Mixture:

  • 1 cup (240ml) whole milk
  • 14 oz sweetened condensed milk
  • 12 oz evaporated milk

For the Lemon Curd:

  • 1 batch of my homemade lemon curd

For the Meringue

  • 4 egg whites
  • 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
  • ¼ tsp cream of tartar
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions
 

For the Cake:

  • Preheat oven to 350°F and line a 9X13 cake pan with parchment paper.
  • In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment (or a large bowl if using a hand mixer), sift in the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Whisk together and set aside.
  • In a large bowl whisk together the egg whites, milk, vanilla, and sour cream; set aside.
  • Beat butter into the dry mixture a tablespoon at a time until all the butter is incorporated. Then, beat in ½ of the wet mixture. (The batter should look dry and crumble at this point.) Add in the rest of the wet mixture and beat until combined.
  • Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45-55 minutes or until a tooth inserted comes out clean. Let the cake cool to room temperature.

For the Milk Mixture:

  • In a large bowl whisk together the three milks. Once the cake is cooled, trim the sides and top and poke the cake with a fork. Drizzle the cake with the milk mixture and have it sit in the fridge for a few hours (ideally overnight.)

For the Meringue Frosting:

  • In a heat-safe bowl, whisk the first four ingredients listed until fully combined.
  • Set the bowl over a saucepan filled with a few inches of water that is starting to simmer. Whisk mixture constantly over the heat for about 5 minutes or until egg whites are warm to the touch and the sugar has dissolved.
  • Remove the bowl from the heat and transfer mixture to a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment or a large bowl with a hand mixer. Mix on high speed until stiff glossy peaks form. About 5-7 minutes. Add vanilla and mix for 20 seconds to combine.

Assembly:

  • Spread the lemon curd over the entire cake, then spread the meringue overtop of the lemon curd.
  • Toasted meringue with a kitchen torch if desired, and enjoy!