Creamy Caramel Flan

Posted by - Jess

This is my first post and challenge for Have the Cake. I was very excited to try something completely new. New, for me, is an extremely easy thing to do because I, up until a few months ago, had an irrational dislike of cooking. I came across a cookbook which converted me to an enthusiastic baker of cakes (I have an obsession with all things cakes). Now, as my new found confidence grows, I am branching off into other dessert areas. I picked this recipe: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Creamy-Caramel-Flan/Detail.aspx for the flan. I wanted to try this one because I am a fan of cheesecake more than straight custards and this one seemed like a cross between the two. The part that freaked me out the most was the caramel making but I made it through without any problems.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup white sugar

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

5 eggs

1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

1 (12 fluid ounce) can evaporated milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees F

My oven is 25 degrees hotter than it says...that oven themometer has been lifesaver.

2. In a small, heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, cook sugar, stirring, until golden. Pour into a 10 inch round baking dish, tilting to coat bottom and sides. Set aside.

A tip given on the recipe site was to put the baking pan in the preheating oven to get warm for when you pour the sugar in. This turned out to be an excellent idea. Even with a well heated pan the sugar hardens very quickly! But I managed to get the caramel sugar nicely spread out in the pan.

3. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until well incorporated. Beat in condensed and evaporated milk and vanilla until smooth. Pour into caramel coated pan. Line a roasting pan with a damp kitchen towel. Place baking dish on towel, inside roasting pan, and place roasting pan on oven rack. Fill roasting pan with boiling water to reach halfway up the sides of the baking dish.

I opted to not use the dish towel in the wet bath and it didn't seem to effect how the flan baked.

4. Bake in preheated oven 50 to 60 minutes, until center is just set. Cool one hour on wire rack, then chill in refrigerator 8 hours or overnight. To unmold, run a knife around edges of pan and invert on a rimmed serving platter.

Baking time seemed to be right on target as I took it out of the oven after about 55 minutes.

All in all this has been a lot of fun to make and eat! I'll be sharing it with my coworkers so as to not totally undermine my diet!