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Coconut Tres Leches Cupcakes

Fluffy, melt in your mouth Coconut Tres Leches Cupcakes soaked with sweet coconut milks and topped with soft whipped cream and toasted coconut.
Prep Time45 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Soak time12 hours
Total Time13 hours 15 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American, Mexican
Servings: 16
Calories: 342kcal

Equipment

  • Standard muffin tin (2)
  • Tulip cupcake liners
  • Stand mixer with paddle and whisk attachment (or hand mixer)
  • Wooden skewers or toothpicks

Ingredients

Cupcakes

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour 120g
  • 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 5 large eggs separated
  • 1 cup white sugar 200g, divided
  • cup whole milk 76g
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Milk Mixture

  • 12 oz can evaporated coconut milk*
  • 14 oz can sweetened condensed coconut milk*
  • ¼ cup whole milk 57g

Whipped Topping

  • 1 pint heavy cream 16oz
  • ¼ cup powdered sugar 30g
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • ¾ cup sweetened shredded coconut 50g

Instructions

Cupcakes

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, line a muffin tin with 12 tulip liners and lightly spray the insides of the tulip liners with cooking spray. Line another muffin tin with 6 more liners and spray.
  • In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.
  • In two separate bowls, separate the egg yolks from the whites, being sure not to let any yolks get into the whites or else they won't whip properly.
  • Add ¾ cup sugar and the egg yolks to a stand mixer and mix on medium high speed (using the paddle attachment) until yolks are pale yellow, about 3-4 minutes. Add the ⅓ cup milk and vanilla and mix on low to combine.
  • Pour the egg yolk mixture over the flour mixture and gently stir by hand until combined (don’t over mix).
  • Using a clean, dry bowl for your stand mixer, whip (using the whisk attachment) the egg whites on high. Once soft peaks begin to form, gradually add the remaining ¼ cup sugar and continue to whip until stiff peaks form.
  • Fold the egg whites into the batter until just combined, careful not to stir and deflate the batter. Do this in a “J” motion, cutting down the middle of your bowl, scraping the bottom, and coming back up on the sides. The batter will be thick and fluffy. Using a large ice cream scoop or two spoons, fill each cupcake liner to half.
  • Bake the cupcakes for 25-30 minutes until completely set. The top of the cupcakes will be slightly browned and will look a bit shriveled. Allow the cupcakes to cool for about 10 minutes before starting to poke the holes.
  • While the cupcakes are resting, combine the evaporated coconut milk*, sweetened condensed coconut milk*, and whole milk in a bowl and mix by hand until it comes together.
  • Using a wooden skewer, poke holes all over the cupcakes the whole way down to the bottom (especially getting the sides), careful not to poke holes through the cupcake liners.
  • Pour 1 tablespoon of milk mixture over each cupcake and allow them to absorb the milk. Repeat this two more times (for a total of 3 tablespoons). Make sure you get the sides as best as possible.
  • Cover the cupcakes as best as possible and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, but preferably overnight. This allows the cupcakes to fully absorb the milk mixture.

Assembly

  • Place the bowl of your stand mixer and the whisk attachment in the freezer for about 15 minutes. This will help your whipped cream whip up best.
  • Toast the sweetened shredded coconut in a large frying pan over medium heat, stirring, until light brown and fragrant. Transfer to a plate to cool completely.
  • To top the cupcakes, whip the heavy cream on high until it starts to thicken, then turn the mixer down and slowly add in the powdered sugar and vanilla. Turn the mixer back to high until lightly stiff peaks form.
  • Pipe or spoon the whipped cream over each cupcake. Sprinkle with the toasted coconut.

Notes

Store the cupcakes covered in the fridge for 3 days.
**Tulip cupcake liners must be used. You cannot use standard cupcake liners for these cupcakes, as they require higher sides for the amount of rise that will occur. If you cannot find or don't want to purchase these, you can make this into a cake, instead. 
If you would prefer to make this into a 13x9" cake, follow my Tres Leches Cake recipe and swap for the coconut product options listed in this recipe
*If you can't find the coconut milk products, simply use one can of normal evaporated milk, one can normal sweetened condensed milk and add 1 - 1 ½ teaspoon of coconut extract to the milk mixture.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 342kcal | Carbohydrates: 39g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 107mg | Sodium: 176mg | Potassium: 233mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 32g | Vitamin A: 640IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 187mg | Iron: 1mg