Flan

Whether you call it crème caramel, crème renversée or flan, depending on where you live, this silk, smooth and creamy dessert with its running caramel sauce, never fails to amaze and will take you over the moon. After testing lots of versions, over years, to achieve the best result, I  settled on this recipe, a great finale to any meal and a crowd pleaser in terms of quality and quantity.

How to make caramel to coat the pan, before adding the custard:

To a saucepan, add the sugar and place over low heat.

Once the sugar starts melting, stir gently with a wooden spoon. It will initially crystalize

Any stubborn chunks would soon melt ; just keep stirring over low heat to avoid burning the caramel.

Transfer the caramel over a 30 cm /12 inches round cake tin. Ensure the caramel evenly covers the bottom and edges of the tin.  You have to be quick, before the caramel hardens.

Ingredients:

For the caramel:

1 cup sugar
1 ½ tablespoons water

For the custard:

4 cups whole milk
4 eggs
1 can sweetened condensed milk (400 g./11 oz.)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon zest

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F.
Prepare a 30cm/12 inch round cake tin.

For the caramel:

Place the sugar and water in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, shaking the pan occasionally without stirring.

When the sugar turns to a golden caramel sauce, remove from heat and immediately pour the caramel into the cake pan covering the bottom and edges.

For the custard:

In a large bowl beat the eggs with an electric mixer for 1 minute.
Add the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, milk, and lemon zest over the mix and beat for 1 more minute incorporating the mixture.
Pour the mixture into the cake pan covering the caramel.

Now place the crème caramel dish in a roasting pan, and pour enough water into the roasting pan to cover two thirds of it.
Place in the middle of the oven and bake for 1 ¼ or 1 ½ hours, or until it is ready.
Cover the cake with aluminum foil if it starts changing color.
Check if it is done by inserting a knife in it … if it comes out clean then it’s ready.
Remove from the oven and baking tin. Allow it to cool.
Refrigerate a minimum of 5 hours.
Invert to a large serving dish.