Spanish Caramel Flan

Throughout my childhood, caramel pudding is something that I relate to my paternal family. My late aunt used to make really delicious caramel custard and I marveled at how delicious yet simple it was. Even when I was in my early teens, caramel custard was something that I could confidently make as her recipe only uses four ingredients. Milk, eggs, sugar and vanilla. It is her signature, no-fail recipe of caramel custard.

By the way, the cabinets are done! We went for a really simple yet pleasant design. Our kitchenette is fairly small, but somehow thanks to the new cabinets, it is looking more spacious now. Overall, I am a happy girl and I can’t wait to fill the cabinets with rows and rows of jars of quinoa, pasta, flax seeds, muscovado, and so on! If you want to have a peek at the new cabinets, you may do so here. Oh and add me up on Instagram people!! Let’s connect ♥

Back to this utterly delicious flan, this is similar to the custard that my late aunt used to make. Since this recipe uses some cream, this results in a creamy and decadent flan. This is the perfect make-ahead dessert especially if you are expecting guests the next day. Using simple pantry ingredients, this flan is easy, light, with a creamy caramel over the silky flan. This is the kinda dessert that everyone would love. This Spanish Caramel Flan is very popular in Spain and you will find this dessert on virtually every menu over there. The recipe uses just 5 ingredients and it also takes only 5 steps to prepare this.

1. In a pan, melt sugar + some water and cook till sugar is caramelized.
2. In a mixing bowl, whisk eggs + sugar + vanilla till creamy.
3. Add in cream + milk and pour this mixture over the ramekins.
4. Put the mixture in a water bath and bake for approximately 30 minutes.
5. Once cooled down, run a knife through the sides of the ramekin and serve on a plate, bottom side up.

This is truly a foolproof recipe and the only thing you have to yield attention to is not to let the caramel get too dark as it might bear a bitter taste to it. You want to look for a nice rich golden caramel that looks simply like a good honey. I think the best part of this dessert would be to plate it. When you turn the flan, up side down and the caramel dripping down the sides, it is a feast for both the eyes and taste buds. Pure orgasmic experience.

If you are a fan of creme brulee, then you would definitely enjoy this flan as well. A classic creme brulee uses only egg yolks where-else this Spanish caramel flan uses both egg yolks and egg whites. This flan also uses less cream compared to creme brulee. So this basically means, if you are health conscious and would only eat one serving of creme brulee, you can eat two servings of this flan. Calories and calculations go hand in hand. Purely maths.

In general, this recipe might serve six, however in my household, it would only serve three. Max. So, if you think you are only gonna eat “one” of this silky and luscious Spanish Caramel Flan, boy you are SO wrong.

Spanish Caramel Flan

 

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Prep time

25 mins

Cook time

35 mins

Total time

1 hour

 

Author: Maya Kitchenette

Serves: 6

Ingredients

• ½ cup sugar (for the caramel)
• ⅓ cup sugar (for the flan)
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups half n half OR 1 cup of fresh milk and 1 cup of whipping cream
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 175c
2. Lightly grease six (180ml) ramekins and place them into a baking dish.

To prepare caramel layer:

1. Pour 2 tbsp of water into a saucepot and add ½ cup of sugar and 1 tbsp of lemon juice. Boil the sugar until it caramelizes, about 4-5 minutes.
2. Carefully spoon this into the prepared ramekins and let it cook for 10 minutes or till the caramel hardens.

To prepare the flan:

1. In a bowl, whisk eggs and ⅓ cup sugar till frothy.
2. Add in vanilla and half n half.
3. Mix well and pour this mixture into the ramekins. Pour boiling water into the baking dish till it reaches 2cm around the ramekins and bake for 25-30 minutes until the flan are set at the edges and slightly jiggly in the center.
4. Cool the flan and once cool, chill the ramekins in the fridge for at least three hours.

To serve:

1. Run a knife around the inside edge of each ramekin to loosen the flan.
2. Place a small dish on top on the ramekin and invert. Lift up the ramekin and serve.

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