Instant Pot Tres Leches Bread Pudding

I was on the fence about making Tres Leches cake because of all the sugar, so when I saw this recipe my eyes lit up and I decided to try this instead. So glad I did!

I thought I would kick it up a notch by using Dulce De Leche instead of plain sweetened condensed. Dulce De Leche, if you don't know, is Caramelized sweetened condensed milk. I made my own in the pressure cooker by following the instructions at the Hip Pressure cooker site, which is super easy and done right inside the can the day before you plan to use it.

I did add two big pinches of fine pink sea salt, (about a scant 1/2 tsp) a bit of vanilla, a pinch of Cardamom, and a bit of grated nutmeg. I tasted the liquid before and after adding salt, first with 1 pinch, and then added another. The salt really helped bring out all of the flavors. (I think all desserts need s little salt,...especially if they're sweet)

I will say that some of the sugar that was sprinkled on the top did not caramelize, so next time I might grind it up a bit smaller in my spice grinder. I drizzled a little bit of the warmed-up Dulce De Leche over the top of the cake after it came out from under the broiler. (low broiler!) It is absolutely divine! I love that there is no added sugar other than at the top. Next time I think I will cut the sugar to 1/8th cup and drizzle the hot Dulce De Leche for the rest of the sweetness.

-The timing was spot on in the Instant Pot. Awesome recipe! Will make again and again. Thank you Urvashi Pitre!

*Served with whipped cream.

**I have plenty of Dulce De Leche left from a 14 oz can to make another one of these desserts to give to a friend.

I made this in the regular oven. Had to check for readiness every 10 minutes after the first 45 minutes in the oven (at 375 degrees) - I set the bread mold in a water bath. Even the most proficient bakers at work were swooning over the recipe. One woman came up to me with tears in her eyes asking for the recipe. She said it tasted exactly like the one her grandmother made and no one had ever been able to replicate.

I made this for my annual "Fat Saturday" Party, It was the hit of the night, I made two 7 inch pots and had two issues with the recipe. First: although I had a 14oz can of sweetened condensed milk it did not contain two 5 oz portions (using the evaporated milk can as measure). Second: the spring form pans (both - different manufacturers) though advertised as leak proof did indeed leak--they need to have their bottoms wrapped in aluminum foil also to capture the leaks. I tried to do two at once in my IP but it did not care for that arrangement and I got the "dreaded burn notice" (after 40 minutes) and had to clean the pot and cook each individually.

This was my first dessert instant pot recipe, so I'm inexperienced. When I poured the mixture into the springform pan, all the batter leaked out the bottom. How am I supposed to keep that from happening? Should probably be mentioned in the recipe...

I made this last night! It was so very easy! I added a splash of vanilla and a hefty pinch of salt. It was GREAT, my teens thought it tasted like Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal! I would be very cautious about the time under the broiler, I went 6 minutes and had a few spots that were "too toasty", next time I will probably hit broil on low and go for the full 8 minutes. Great, EASY recipe for a week night dessert!

What does, "Sprinkle the pudding until the top is lightly browned and caramelized, 5 to 8 minutes," mean?