Flan!
“Flan, flan, it’s our plan! If you can’t flan it, no one can!”
Yep, that’s my daggy flan chant. And yes, I chanted it around the house after I had made flan (flan!).
The other week we went to see the lovely Emily and Mark. I was pretty excited because we were going to meet the new addition to their household – wee baby Felix!
Naturally, I don’t expect someone who has a two year old and a 6 week old to cook for me, so I brought dinner to them. I made a chorizo, chicken and fish stew, which seemed quite dull at home. But after I reheated it at their place, and added the fish to cook, it seemed much more interesting. I’ll have to try it again sometime and perhaps document it.
And dessert, of course there was dessert. For dessert, we had flan (flan!). The flan tasted good and was rich and sweet, but the texture was firm rather than silky smooth. It wasn’t too firm, but it certainly wasn’t what I was expecting. I’m not sure if it was the recipe, or whether the flans had been in the oven for too long. It’s possible that they were baked too long as my ramekins were largish (and in hindsight I should’ve used smaller ones!) so the flan was very shallow.
I’d like to try making it again, but perhaps I’ll try a different recipe next time.
Flan, flan! That’s the plan! If you can’t make flan, no one can!
Flan
From Taste.com.au.
Serves 6
1/2 cup (110g) caster sugar
395g can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 eggs
Thin cream, to serve
Preheat your oven to 170°C. Lightly grease six 3/4 cup ramekins.
Place the sugar and 1/4 cup water into a saucepan and stir over low heat until the sugar is dissolved. Let it simmer for 10-15 minutes, occasionally brushing down the sides of the pot with a wet pastry brush, until the mixture is golden brown.
Pour immediately into the prepared ramekins, and swirl each one so the caramel coasts the sides (it will set quickly, so be fast!). Set aside to cool.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the condensed milk, vanilla essence and eggs. Strain into a jug.
Place the caramel lined ramekins in a roasting pan and pour the milk mixture between them. Pour enough boiling water into the roasting pan to come up halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover the pan with foil and bake for about 35 minutes or until just set. Remove from the pan, let cool, and then refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.
Before serving, dip the base of each ramekin into a bowl of warm water for 30 seconds. Run a knife around the edge of the ramekins to release the flan, then invert into a shallow bowl. Serve with cream if desired.
Anh
September 7, 2009 @ 4:42 am
My sister would love to eat this~. And really, flan made with condensed milk is the best of the best!
Maria@TheGourmetChallenge
September 7, 2009 @ 9:54 am
Oh yum, that looks so rich….its definitely lip licking standard! I love the amount of caramel to flan ratio…enough to have some left over to lick off the plate!
I can just imagine you with pom poms jumping around the house while chanting that rhyme!
Rilsta
September 7, 2009 @ 1:15 pm
This looks like a creme caramel, is it the same thing? I actually think it is better a bit shallower so you get more of the sauce!
thanh7580
September 7, 2009 @ 10:39 pm
It could be that you overcooked it Agnes. I think I did that the first time too with my creme caramel. The next time, I didn't cook it as long and it was a lot smoother.
You can try this recipe that I tried from the Movida book. It's a creme caramel but it's so insanely delicious.
Movida Creme Caramel Recipe
Zunwu
September 8, 2009 @ 2:02 pm
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Jennie
September 8, 2009 @ 5:26 pm
Ah flan! The filipino version of this recipe requires for the flan to be steamed instead of baked. One of my favourite desserts 🙂
Agnes
September 12, 2009 @ 5:03 pm
Anh: agree with you about the condensed milk, I love the stuff! 😀
Maria: gawd, me with pom poms. What a scary image! 😉
Rilsta: it's very similar to a creme caramel, expect this flan has condensed milk instead of cream.
Thanh: yeah, I'm pretty sure I did overcook it. I'll have to try that Movida recipe sometime. 🙂
Jennie: we need to have a flan-off!