Mexican Flan

If you’ve ever enjoyed a French crème caramel, Spanish crema volteada or Portuguese pudim flan, you will adore Mexican flan, a superbly rich and silky version of the classic caramel custard dessert. This recipe hails from Mely Martínez’ The Mexican Home Kitchen, in which she shares traditional home-style recipes and memories from Mexico.

Read our full review of The Mexican Home Kitchen by Mely Martínez. You can also find a savoury chicken tostadas recipe from the book.

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Mexican Flan

This easy recipe for Mexican-style flan has been well-known in Mexico for years. It is made using whole eggs, condensed milk, and evaporated milk, and covered with a light caramel syrup. You can also make this flan using cream cheese or coconut milk for a different taste and texture. This is not the traditional, old-fashioned way of making flan, as it is usually prepared as a custard where the milk, vanilla, and sugar are slowly simmered.

Servings 12 servings

Author Mely Martínez

Ingredients

• 200 g (1 cup) sugar
• 2 tablespoons (30 ml) water
• 1 397 ml can (14 ounces) condensed milk
• 1 354 ml can (12 ounces) evaporated milk
• 6 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Notes

(Notas)
If you want your flan to have an even creamier texture, add one 8-ounce (225 g) package of cream cheese to the blender when you are preparing the milk and egg mixture in step 3.
Store any leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Instructions

• Place the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil until the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat and keep boiling until the syrup is a light-brown caramel color, about 10 minutes.
• Pour the caramel into an 8-inch (20 cm) round baking pan, swirling it around so that the caramel evenly coats the bottom. Let cool completely. Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C).
• Add the condensed and evaporated milks, eggs, and vanilla extract to a blender, and blend until a smooth mixture. Slowly pour this mixture into the pan with the cooled caramel and cover with aluminum foil.
• For the water bath (bain-marie), place this pan inside a larger baking pan. Add warm water to the larger pan until it is . inch (2 cm) deep.
• Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the flan looks firm. It will keep cooking while it cools, so do not let it stay in the oven any longer. Allow it to cool in the pan for at least 6 hours before serving.
• Once the flan has cooled, run a knife between the flan and the sides of the baking pan. Place a large serving plate on top of the pan and quickly invert it to avoid spilling any liquid caramel from the container. Slide the pan off the flan and serve.

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Kavey Eats received a review copy of The Mexican Home Kitchen by Mely Martínez from publishers Rock Point (Quarto). Recipe published with permission.