Monday, March 24, 2008

TWD caramel topped flan...





For the Caramel:
1/3 cup sugar
3 tbsp water
squirt of fresh lemon juice

For the Flan:
1-1/2 cups heavy cream
1-1/4 cups whole milk
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Getting Ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a roasting pan or a 9-x-13-inch baking pan with a double thickness of paper towels. Fill a teakettle with water and put it on to boil; when the water boils, turn off the heat.Put a metal 8-x-2-inch round cake pan-not a nonstick one-in the oven to heat while you prepare the caramel.


To Make the Caramel: Stir the sugar, water and lemon juice together in a small heavy-bottomed saucepan. Put the pan over medium-high heat and cook until the sugar becomes an amber-colored caramel, about 5 minutes-remove the pan from the heat at the first whiff of smoke.Remove the cake pan from the oven and, working with oven mitts, pour the caramel into the pan and immediately tilt the pan to spread the caramel evenly over the bottom; set the pan aside.

To Make the Flan: Bring the cream and milk just to a boil. Meanwhile, in a 2-quart glass measuring cup or in a bowl, whisk together the eggs, yolks and sugar. Whisk vigorously for a minute or two, and then stir in the vanilla. Still whisking, drizzle in about one quarter of the hot liquid-this will temper, or warm, the eggs so they won't curdle. Whisking all the while, slowly pour in the remainder of the hot cream and milk. Using a large spoon, skim off the bubbles and foam that you worked up.

Put the caramel-lined cake pan in the roasting pan. Pour the custard into the cake pan and slide the setup into the oven. Very carefully pour enough hot water from the kettle into the roasting pan to come halfway up the sides of the cake pan. (Don't worry if this sets the cake pan afloat.) Bake the flan for about 35 minutes, or until the top puffs a bit and is golden here and there. A knife inserted into the center of the flan should come out clean.
Remove the roasting pan from the oven, transfer the cake pan to a cooking rack and run a knife between the flan and the sides of the pan to loosen it. Let the flan cool to room temperature on the rack, then loosely cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.
When ready to serve, once more, run a knife between the flan and the pan. Choose a rimmed serving platter, place the platter over the cake pan, quickly flip the platter and pan over and remove the cake pan-the flan will shimmy out and the caramel sauce will coat the custard.
Yield: 6 to 8 Servings

This is one of those recipes that makes me so happy to be a part of "Tuesdays With Dorie." This is not a recipe I would have tried on my own, but I'm so glad I had the opportunity to try it!?!? (Does that make any sense??) This weeks recipe was chosen by Steph from a whisk and a spoon. I did double the caramel recipe (based on the TWD reviews) and I'm glad I did, however...as you can tell by the pics I didn't let it get dark enough. It still tasted good! This got mixed reviews from my panel of judges (two 9 year olds, a 4 year old, a 2 year old & my hubby)...seemed to be more of a texture thing that was the problem more than a taste thing...STILL, a fun recipe to try!

21 comments:

noskos said...

Great looking flan! I got mixed reviews too, it's one of those dessert that you love or don't care much for I guess.

April said...

It looks great!

Shari@Whisk: a food blog said...

I love the heart-shaped dish!

amanda. said...

I had the same issue with my caramel. I got so scared that I would burn it that I pulled it off the heat too soon. It was still tasty though.

I'm glad you had fun making this one. Didn't it look so elegant? I think it'd be a great dinner party dessert.

And I love, love, love your heart dish. So cute!

Anonymous said...

Your flan look pretty good with his blondy head.
I always have trouble with home made caramel.
Thank you for your comment.
verO

Gretchen Noelle said...

Great that you tried a recipe you normally would have avoided. Glad some of you liked it! It looks great!

Marie Rayner said...

Your flan looks great. I just love the heart shaped dish! I love that each week we get to stretch our abilities and try something new, sometimes something we might normally not want to try. I had never had flan before. I was quite pleased with the ease of this recipe and it didn't taste half bad either!

Bumblebutton said...

Isn't it so interesting when you get a perspective from little ones? Beautiful job!

Anonymous said...

I think your pale caramel looks very pretty.
Also, I love your banner. The spoons are excellent!

Anonymous said...

Looks great! Mixed reviews seem to be the theme for this recipe it appears.

Jennie said...

yea, well you would have gotten a good review from me if you would have let me try some! i am not happy you know. you tell me about this dessert about 5 times and then you just leave me high and dry. nice

Anonymous said...

Your flan looks great! You have a pretty presentation!

Heather B said...

Great job! It looks wonderful. I wish I would have doubled my caramel. I didn't have near enough!

Melissa said...

Love the heart shaped dish. The texture thing is definitely a problem for me too!

diane said...

It looks very elegant!

Mary Ann said...

Nice pictures. I felt the same way about not choosing to make this on my own but glad for the chance to do so!

Mari said...

Love the heart shaped dish, and your flan looks yummy!

Katrina said...

I've got the same pampered chef measuring cup...
The flan looks great! I didn't like the caramel (too watery in mine) but it looks great on yours!

Rachel said...

Glad you liked it!

Nina Timm said...

Sweet, smooth and silky - a great dessert.Thx for the easy-to-follow recipe.

Cecilia said...

Did any of your kids enjoy it? I know that I definitely like the texture of flan when I was younger, but I'm digging it now.

I think the lighting in your pictures is wonderful. Do you use a flash or is it all natural light? Your prep photos look amazing.