French Toast-inspired Tres Leches with Cinnamon-Orange-Chile Chocolate Sauce

The name may seem like a mouthful but if you make this dish you will want a mouthful. This was my final dish in the now infamous Iron Chef battle a few weeks ago. It was an original dessert that I developed while I was in the grocery store shopping for the battle. It is a sweet dessert with a spicy finish. As the name implies, it is a variation of the Cuban dessert, Tres Leches, with a French Toast twist. I decided to incorporate the secret ingredient, peppers and chilies, with a spicy arbol chili powder. This dish is one the best tastiest and most crowd-pleasing recipes I have ever cooked.

French Toast-inspired Tres Leches with Cinnamon-Orange-Chile Chocolate Sauce

Serves 5

1 Sara Lee pound cake
1 Egg, scrambled
1 C. of Evaporated Milk
1/2 C. of Whole Milk
2 Tbl. of Sugar
1 Tbl. of Cinnamon
1 tsp. of Arbol Chile Powder
1/2 tsp. of Salt



- In a shallow dish, whisk all ingredients except the pound cake
- Slice the pound cake into 3/4-inch thick slices
- Heat a pat of butter in a med-high skillet
- Dip a slice of pound cake in the egg mixture and flip
- Place dredged slice into pan and brown on both sides
- Remove from pan and top with Cinnamon-Orange-Chile Chocolate Sauce



Cinnamon-Orange-Chile Chocolate Sauce

1 16 oz. Goya Chocolate Bar, broken into small pieces
1/2 C. of Evaporated Milk
The Zest and Juice of 1 Orange
1/4 C. of Sugar
1/4 C. of Whole Milk
1 Tbl. of Cinnamon
1 Tbl. of Arbol Chile Powder



- In a small saucepan, combine all ingredients and simmer for 15 minutes
- Serve atop French Toast-inspired Tres Leches

Photo provided by Marian Wang