5 Ingredients or Fewer

Mexican Flan

by:
June  5, 2018
4.5
2 Ratings
Mexican Flan
Photo by dymnyno
  • Prep time 20 minutes
  • Cook time 1 hour
  • Serves 8
Author Notes

I love chocolate but I'm not a chocoholic. I'm a caramel addict. I love it in all forms: candy, cake, ice cream and puddings included. I am a lazy cook and when a recipe is quick and delicious and becomes a popular favorite of my repertoire, then I make it regularly for my self and as a take to for friends' dinners. Flan is very simple and I have made some very minor changes to a ubiquitous dessert of Mexico which I think makes it special and a little different.
It's important to use whole milk, heavy cream and more yolks than whites because it's the high fat content that makes this flan so silky smooth. Also important to use a fine strainer. —dymnyno

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 cup fine white sugar
  • 1 cup whole milk (be sure it's whole milk)
  • 14 ounces *****Cajeta (or dulce de leche)can be found in Hispanic grocery stores
  • 1 cup egg yolks and egg whites (more yolks than whites)
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Directions
  1. Caramelize the sugar with a a couple tablespoons of water over high heat, while swirling the mixture around a little to cook evenly until it becomes golden and then starts to darken. Pour into a flan pan or small pyrex dish and coat the bottom.
  2. Pour whole milk, heavy cream, eggs and whites, ****cajeta (or dulce de leche) and vanilla into a blender and blend until smooth.
  3. Strain the mixture into the pan or dish. Put the flan pan into a bain marie.(put the flan pan into a larger roasting pan) and fill with hot water half way up the side of the flan pan, careful not to get any water into the pan. Carefully slide into the middle rack of a preheated 350 degree oven. Bake for about 45 to 60 minutes. Check that the middle is setting by inserting a clean knife.
  4. Remove from the oven and cool and then refrigerate to set more. Run a knife around the edges of the flan and invert the flan pan by placing the serving plate on top and flipping the plate over so the flan is on the plate. Let the caramel drain onto the flan from the pan.
  5. ****If you can't find carmelized cajeta, or dulce de leche, it's easy to make your own. Take the label off a can of sweetened condensed milk. Put it into a pan of water with at least an inch of water over the can and simmer for about 2 hours. (check to make sure the water doesn't evaporate). Cool and open the can.
Tags:

See what other Food52ers are saying.

Popular on Food52

1 Review

a_dawn_g
a_dawn_g November 6, 2018
Can you please be more specific on the egg portion? Thank you :)