Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Simply Flan / Flan, Tout Simplement

Flan



Sugar High Friday returns home to Jennifer at Domestic Goddess and in this month challenge she is asking us to make our favorite dessert. “The one you crave when you are on a diet or when you’ve been away from home for a long time”
It is hard to narrow my favorite desserts to a particular one since I always fall in love with a dessert that makes me forget the others. Sometimes I crave a chocolaty dessert, sometimes a creamy dessert or a fruity dessert. Sometimes I only want a scoop of ice cream or no dessert at all. You see for me dessert is about a mood, an atmosphere. While dessert can only mean for some people a good ending to a meal, for me it is more than that. Dessert is proven, at least at my house, to release tensions, to enchant senses and to transport you home even when you are at 4272 Miles away.
Flan is baked custard that is very popular in Spain. Like crème caramel, both built on a mixture of eggs and milk or cream, they are all about texture-smooth and satiny. Custards owe their legendary silkiness to the slow cooking of eggs and cream or milk until the ideal consistency is achieved. A water bath is used for baking Flan because it insulates the custards from the direct heat of the oven, ensuring the even, gentle cooking that is necessary to baking a successful, silky, creamy custard. Custards are perfectly done if it jiggles slightly when it’s gently shaken. It is very important not to overbake your Flan.
I have been eating Flan since I can remember, battling with my siblings to who get the biggest part and the most of caramel. I love Flan. My family loves flan. Needless to explain then why I choose Flan for this event. This is just the dessert that I crave after a light summer lunch, the dessert that my husband and I craved when we were pregnant and the one that spoiled my so-called healthy diet a few days ago.
I like my Flan to be creamy, soft and light, even though there is nothing light about it. I hate grainy, dense and eggs tasting Flan.

Here are some Troubles you may encounter with your Flan or any baked custard:
- Flan is grainy or watery: it means it was overbaked
- Flan is too wet in center: it means it was underbaked
- When making your caramel, sugar crystals form: You shouldn’t stir your caramel once the sugar has dissolved.

My Flan has no fancy spices and no twist to it. It is a plain vanilla Flan, because when I crave, I crave authentic desserts, mostly from my childhood.


Flan



Recipe: Serves 8

- 9 oz granulated sugar
- 1 vanilla pod or 2 tsp vanilla essence
- 1 2/3 cups milk
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 5 extra large eggs
- 2 egg yolks

Put 6 oz of the sugar in a small pan with 4 tsp water. Bring to a boil over a high heat, swirling the pan to dissolve the sugar. Boil, without stirring, until the syrup turns a golden brown caramel.
Pour a little caramel into each mold. Pour the milk and cream into a pan, add the vanilla seeds or vanilla extract and bring the mixture close to a boil. Remove from the heat and let stand for 15-20 min.
In a bowl, whisk the eggs and extra yolks with the remaining sugar for 2-3 min until creamy. Whisk in the warm milk and cream mixture, and then strain it into the caramel-lined moulds.
Put the molds in a water bath. Cover the molds with foil paper and bake in a preheated 325 F oven for about 20-25 min. A toothpick inserted to test should come out clean. Remove from the water, leave to cool and refrigerate overnight.


Flan



In francais please: Pour 8 personnes

- 250g de sucre crystalise
- 1 gousse de vanille ou 2c.c d’extrait de vanille
- 400ml de lait
- 250ml de crème liquide
- 5 gros oeufs
- 2 jaunes d’oeufs

Mettre 175g de sucre dans une casserole avec 4c.c d’eau. Porter a ebullition sur grand feu en remuant la casserole jusqu’a ce que le sucre se dissout. Bouillir, sans remuer le sucre jusqu’a le caramel soit d’une belle couleur dore. Verser dans vos ramequins.
Mettre le lait et la crème dans une casserole et ajouter les graines de gousse de vanille ou l’extrait de vanille. Rechauffer a peine jusqu’a ce qu’il arrive a ebullition puis retirer du feu. Laisser infuser 15-20 min.
Dans un bol, melanger les oeufs, les jaunes d’oeufs et le sucre restant pendant 2-3 min ou jusqu’a ce que le mélange soit cremeux. Egouter votre crème et la verser dans lea ramequins de caramel. Couvrir d’une feuille d’aluminium et faire cuire au bain-marie, dans un four prechauffe a 160C pendant 20-25 min. Retirer du bain-marie doucement et laisser refroidir. Puis, mettre au frigo toute la nuit avant de le consomer.

18 comments:

LILIBOX said...

tu as raison un bon vrai flan au caramel sans autre artifice .
Qu'est ce que c'est bon !!

Nora B. said...

I love crème caramel & custard, so this looks devine to me.

Helene said...

Ca me rapelle toujours les Flanbi avec la laguette qu'on tire!
Le tien doit etre bien meilleur!

Claude-Olivier Marti said...

Ton couscous ^__^ non j'adore les photos mais je pensais t'avoir laissé un commentaire....sorry ;-) Par contre sur un flan tout simple mais tout bon, je ne peux que venir et saliver...simple oui, mais archi efficace ;-)

Biz
Claude

Aimée said...

Thank you for featuring MY favorite dessert as well! People don't understand why I love it so much, but it's so simple, beautiful and ideal. I think that the skeptics just have never had a perfect flan. Yours looks about as close to perfection as it can get. Beautiful!

Cheryl said...

I don't think have ever had flan f any flavor. But it looks right up my alley, just beautiful.

Ilva said...

It's so good! And your photos are wonderful!

Jes said...

I've never really enjoyed flan, but this recipe makes me want to make it and see what I think now. :) Looks lovely and it's perfect for SHF!

Patricia Scarpin said...

I would crave this beauty any time, too, Rose!! It's luscious!!!

nikcreate said...

Flans are one of my favorite desserts every holiday in our family reunion my aunt makes the most creamy flan I have ever tasted its an absolute must for all of us! I don't make flans for the reason that its my favorite and can easily eat so much flan in one sitting which would be bad for me! so I only have flans in halo-halo (Filipino's favorite summer treats) and my aunt's flan on special occasions.

veronica said...

qu'il est beau le flan caramel sera toujours pour moi un delice des yeux et des papilles...bravo..

Anonymous said...

rien de tel qu'un flan caramel aprés un bon repas!il fait partie du patrimoine,il revient souvent et il se transmet d'arrière grand-mère en arrière petite fille!!c'est fou ,au moment ou j'allais consulter ton blog je me disais:il faut que je fasse un flan aujourd'hui et sur quoi je tombe?!!biz

Lis said...

I've never had flan, Rose! Since you only live a state away will you bring me some? Pretty please? =))

Looks BEAUTIFUL!

xoxo

Warda said...

- On est d'accord la-dessus Lili.
- I am glad you like it Nora
- J'espere qu'il est meilleur. Il fut un temps par contre ou j'aimais le flambi. Surout quand tu tires sur la languette pour le faire tomber. Ca m'amusait.
- Pour etre efficace, il est tres efficace. Pour le couscous, je voulais dire que tu n'avais plus de place pour lui apres tous les p'tits plats du pic nic.
- I am just happy that I made your favorite dessert Aimee. Thanks for your kindness.
- Thanks Cheryl. You should try it.
- Thank you so much Ilva.
- I respect your opinion Jess. But just try mine and you will change your mind. In all modesty of course.
- You are so nice My dear Patricia. Anytime you want.
- Mmmmn Nicole, Your aunt's flan sounds delicious.
- Je suis contente qu'il te plaise Veronica. Merci beaucoup
- J'etais gatee Mima par ma mere qui m'a effectivement transmise la recette du flan. Bien qu'elle le fasse toujours mieux que moi. Je vois que les grands esprits se rencontrent. Tiens moi au courant du resultat.
- Oh Lis, my dear Lis. You know that I would deliver for you anything you want.Flan, cakes, Pies...

Kelly-Jane said...

Oh my, that looks positlvely devine!

Peabody said...

Flan is definitely one of my all time favorites...good choice.

Warda said...

- Thank you very much Kelly Jane.

- Thanks Peabody. Happy to hear that I made one of your favorites.

MissK said...

I made something similar as well but i couldn't get the sugar brown no matter how long i left it and used the same sugar as yourself,it looks lovely by the way.Yum.