Flan
Source of Recipe
by Grandpoohbah, from allrecipes
This traditional Mexican dessert of creamy custard crowned with rich, toasty caramellooks complicated but is really very easy to make. Many recipes call for individualcustard cups, but if you don't have any you can just as easily use a pie pan and slicethe flan into wedges for serving. Customize your flan recipe by replacing 1/4 cup ofthe milk with rum or your favorite liqueur, or try mixing in orange zest or shreddedcoconut. To provide gentle, even heat, flan recipes will ask you to bake the custard ina water bath -- a roasting pan full of water, in which you set the flan dishes. Bring thewater to a boil before you pour it into the pan or it will take a very long time for theoven to heat it up. When it's done, the flan will be firm around the edges, but it will stillbe wobbly in the middle; the texture will even out as it cools.
How To Make Fantastic Flan:
When your mouth is burning with the heat of supremely spicy Mexican foods, take a tip from Latin America and assuage the heat with the perfect end to every spicy meal - with a big serving of flan! The creamy, cool texture will soak into your heat-drenched tastebuds and soothe the burn with every silky spoonful.
Mexican flan is traditionally a caramel-coated vanilla-infused custard delicacy, but it is known for its chameleonic ability to embrace the essences of a wide variety of other flavorings. Chocolate, coffee, orange, strawberry, vanilla and coconut are only a few of the many flavor options you could choose to experiment with. The shape that you serve flan is another variable that you can play around with; some people choose to serve flan the old-fashioned way - baked in a pie dish and served in slices, while others prefer the more modern version of individual-sized servings baked in ramekins or cupcake pans.
Making the Caramel:
The flan-making process can be a slightly touchy one, and the first bit of temperament that may rear its head is the making of the caramel. Depending on the recipe you are following, you will be directed to melt the sugar, with or without the addition of water, in a saucepan until it is golden brown. Keep in mind that if the sugar is overcooked it will turn very dark and taste burned, so be very watchful while preparing the caramel. There are a couple of tricks to keeping the caramel from crystallizing - a common problem - while it cooks. The first is to place a drop of lemon juice into the sugar while it is heating. The acid will prevent the sugar from crystallizing, keeping your caramel smooth and clear. The second secret is not to stir the caramel. You can swirl it in the pan if you like, but don't put a spoon in it - sugar crystals can cling to a spoon, causing a whole pan of caramel to become cloudy and lumpy. As soon as the caramel achieves a deep golden color, remove it from the heat and pour it evenly over the bottom of the dish or dishes in which you will be baking the flan. Tilt the pans so that the caramel coats the bottom and a bit of the sides, and then set them in a place where they will not be disturbed while you continue cooking.
Making the Custard:
Some recipes will call for sweetened condensed milk , while others will call for half-and-half cream or whole milk. A flan made with sweetened condensed milk will be slightly more dense than one made with milk or cream. Likewise, flan made with milk rather than cream will be slightly lighter than a cream-based one. Experiment with different ingredients and recipes to find the one that suits you perfectly. Place the milk, flavoring (ex: coconut milk, orange rind, or cinnamon stick) and sugar into a large saucepan and bring to a slow simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. While the milk mixture comes to a simmer, whisk the eggs until pale yellow. Very slowly, whisk the hot milk mixture into the bowl of eggs. Once combined, remove any bits and pieces of flavoring if necessary (like orange rind or cinnamon stick). It's a good idea to pour the entire mixture through a fine mesh strainer into another bowl to ensure a perfectly smooth texture in your flan. Divide the custard equally between your caramel-coated baking containers.
Baking the Flan:
Another touchy aspect of making flan is the actual baking of it. Historically, flan was baked on top of a stove in a water bath. Baking custard in the gentle heat of a bath remains the preferred method because of custard's delicate nature. It has become customary to cook the flan in a water bath inside of the oven where heat can be regulated to keep the water at an even temperature.
Making a water bath is a very simple process. Simply bring a pot full of water to a boil while you preheat the oven. Lay a dishtowel on the bottom of a roasting pan, place the flan dish or dishes on top of the towel, and then pour the boiling water into the roasting pan (being careful to not splash any water into the flan) until the water is within about 1/2 inch of the top of the flan dishes. The water will gently cook the custard at a more even temperature than if the flan was placed directly into the oven, and the towel will serve to further insulate the bottom of the flan from direct heat. Always use both boiling water and a preheated oven when making flan. If the water is cold when the flan is placed into the water bath, the recommended baking time will be thrown off because it will take the oven a considerable amount of time to heat the water to a high enough cooking temperature.
Is it Done Yet?
The flan is ready to be removed from the oven when it has begun the process of setting . You will know that the process of setting has begun when you gently shake a pan or container of the flan and the custard jiggles slightly. If the flan is still liquid, it has not begun to set. When the flan has begun to set, carefully remove the roasting pan with water and flan from the oven. Let the flan cool while sitting in the water bath; it will continue to cook and finish setting while it cools.
Variations:
Flan is a perfect canvas for a dessert-lover who enjoys experimenting with flavors! There is an endless bank of flavorings that will work perfectly with flan. For example, vanilla flan can be made marvelous by substituting vanilla extract with a vanilla bean sliced in half. Place the sliced vanilla bean into the warming milk and discard before combining the milk with the eggs. Mixing approximately 1/4 cup of ground coffee into the warming milk mixture makes coffee-flavored flan - be sure to strain the coffee grounds out of the flan before baking!
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