Flan is pure perfume to me. My Tex-Mex mom often made it by putting all the milk and eggs in the blender, thinking about caramel, and then screaming when it split in the middle and came loose. Kid-me didn’t care about the aesthetics of the flan, he just wanted to taste the custard on his tongue. On my birthday we would put candles in it and watch it sway. I’ll wash it down with 14 Dr Peppers. I had refined tastes.
These days, I’m spending the holidays with my sister. We always make flan for Christmas dessert. Because it’s so light and airy after a heavy meal. After my mom passed away, we searched for her recipes but found only fragments. (Lesson on grief – you’re always trying to fill in the blanks. You won’t, but you’ll definitely try.)
Luckily, we’ve finally found a recipe that solves Mom’s plan woes. This recipe comes from the brilliant Nik Sharma and his wonderful cookbook. taste equationI searched far and wide to come up with the smoothest and most complete plan I’ve ever had. When we first nailed the plan, we squealed with joy. (I love making the flan with someone else, because I want the other person to cheer when I flip the pan and it thumps perfectly in a pool of caramel.)
Nik Sharma grew up eating similar “caramel pudding” in India. He writes in his cookbook that he makes it sweet with jaggery and eats it on hot Bombay summer days. In his book, he details the techniques of each recipe, making them not only perfect and delicious, but also educational. If you are a fan of Cook illustratedLevel food science geek, buy the dang book! It’s really amazing.
So what makes the perfect plan?
* The caramel will become a golden amber color. Not too light. It’s not too dark. Depending on your personality, be impatient or patient.
* Cream of tartar scientifically helps caramel crystallize. (Don’t ask me to explain.)
* The custard will be smooth and not full of air bubbles. Stir every step as if you were moving in slow motion. There are no blenders here.
* The custard should not harden. Checking will begin in 45 minutes.
* Bainmarie is absolutely necessary. sorry. Yes, pouring boiling water into a baking pan is annoying. But this is what cooks the custard as gently as possible.
* Homemade. The cracked and bubbly flan would still be perfect if you made it for me.
in taste equation In one version, roasted hazelnuts can be infused into the milk. I did that for a year and it was lovely and subtle, but the nostalgia in me prefers something milky and simple. Sharma also suggested using hazelnut creamer, which got me thinking about the untapped baking uses of coffee creamer.
Anyway, on to the plan.
Holiday Plan
Recipe adapted from “Hazelnut Flan” by Nik Sharma taste equation.
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
½ cup (150 g) sugar
2 cups whole milk
1 14-ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
¼ teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
To make caramel:
In a small saucepan, mix the cream of tartar with ¼ cup water and pour the sugar into the center (Sharma’s great tip is to keep the sugar from sticking to the sides of the pan). Cook over medium heat until the sugar begins to caramelize, 6 to 8 minutes. Once it looks like your ideal caramel shade (in my case, a whimsical amber), pour it into an 8-inch round cake pan and quickly rotate the pan so the caramel covers the bottom.
Baking preparation:
Preheat the oven to 325°F and bring a kettle or pot of water to a boil. Take out a 13-inch x 9-inch baking dish that will fit the cake pan and a wire rack that will fit inside it. (Or get crafty with foil, kitchen towelThis is to keep the cake pan elevated.)
To make the custard:
Clean out your trusty caramel pot and fill it with milk, condensed milk, vanilla, and salt. Heat over medium-high, but do not boil. We don’t want milk skin. Remove pan from heat.
Break the eggs into a large bowl and use a spatula to break up the yolks and gently stir the eggs. This tip from Sharma can completely change your game. Because if you don’t whip it rigorously, you’ll end up with those dreaded bubbles in your flan. We want something soft and smooth. Slowly add ½ cup of warm milk mixture and gently mix with a spatula. Slow motion plan. Enjoy the process. Continue adding milk slowly, in small portions, until it is all incorporated. If lumps form, strain the custard through a fine sieve.
Assemble and Bake:
The caramel has solidified in the cake pan. Doesn’t it look cool? For an even more perfect flan, run a spatula over the caramel and slowly pour in the custard like a waterfall of milk. Cover the cake pan with two layers of foil, making sure it is completely covered.
Place the flan on a wire rack inside the baking dish and pour boiling water from the kettle into the baking dish to come halfway up the sides of the flan pan. (If more water is needed, place the kettle back on the oven pan.) Carefully transfer the baking dish with the boiling water and your precious flan to the oven and bake for 45 to 60 minutes. Remove the foil and check to see if the custard has set and shakes slightly (if it shakes too much, it is too watery, so continue baking).
Using gloves, remove the flan pan from the baking dish and leave it to cool somewhere in the kitchen. Refrigerate overnight (covered with foil) to really set.
Flip and Serve:
Remove the foil and carefully run a long, sharp knife around the edges. Place the rimmed plate/dish on top of the flan plate and tell your sister to start filming. Hold the plate with both hands and quickly flip it over. Tap the bottom of the flan plate to let you know it’s flan time. Slowly lift the pan and admire your beautiful creation. Use a spatula to remove any remaining caramel from the pan.
Slice and serve. I think it would be nice to have a little sherry.
PS 10 Awesome holiday rituals and three easy recipes to make during the holidays.
