Learn how to make flan with this recipe and video from Charlotte restaurant Customshop
Flan is creamy and sweet — and it can be intimidating to make. It’s not a recipe you’ll find in many home cooks’ regular lineup, but we’re here to help with that.
Check out the video ⬆️ to get a free cooking lesson from Andres Kaifer, the chef/owner at Customshop and find out how to make it.
Kaifer, who’s from in Miami and has Spanish heritage, grew up with his mother, Carmen Kaifer, making the dish. “It’s a nice little sweet finish to any meal,” Kaifer said, noting that you can garnish it, too. (The restaurant uses seasonal toppings such as maple bourbon figs, or fruit.)
How to make flan
Equipment will you need:
- 2 pots
- blender
- fine mesh strainer
- 4-ounce aluminum souffle cups
- baking pan
- foil
Plan ahead: Ideally, the mixture will need to rest in the refrigerator overnight before baking.
How much will the recipe make? About 10 4-ounce souffle cups of flan.
How to make the flan base
Note — these measurements were converted from grams for home cooks without a food scale.
Ingredients:
1 12 ounce can evaporated milk
1 12 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated sugar
0.82 cups (192 grams) heavy cream
2 whole eggs
5 egg yolks
0.95 cup (218 grams) mascarpone
0.96 tsp. (6 grams) kosher salt
Method of preparation:
Combine sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, heavy cream and salt in a pot and whisk well, making sure that the condensed milk doesn’t sink to the bottom. Bring the mixture to a simmer on the stove top, then remove from heat.
Separately in a blender, mix the whole eggs, egg yolks and room temperature mascarpone on slow to medium speed until smooth. While blending, slowly add the warm milks and mascarpone to temper the mixture so the eggs don’t scramble. Blend until smooth and repeat until the entire mixture is homogonized. Strain the finished mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to remove any bits of curdled egg.
For best results, refrigerate flan base overnight to allow all ingredients to settle.
How to make the caramel
Ingredients:
1/2 cup water
2 cups sugar
baking spray
Method of preparation:
Pour water in a pot, then add sugar without mixing. Place on medium high heat and allow mixture to melt. Do not agitate or move it as this will cause crystalization in your caramel, although you can lightly swirl it occasionally to attain an even color.
Allow the mixture to turn amber in color, and remove from heat. Spray aluminum souffle cups with baking spray.
Pour just enough caramel into each cup to have a thin layer on the bottom — being careful, as the caramel is extremely hot. Allow to harden to room temperature before pouring flan base into cups.
Completing the dish
Baking instructions:
After refrigerating the flan mixture overnight, pour the mixture into the ramekins and leave space at the top for the mixture to expand as it bakes.
Set the ramekins inside a baking pan in a hot water bath 1/4 up the sides and making sure to cover the pan with foil so that the flan does not caramelize in the oven. Bake at 300 degrees for two hours, rotating after one hour.
If the flan is too jiggly after two hours, leave it in the oven longer. Kaifer said, “You want to be able to tap the flan on the side and see minimal movement in the center. If the flan moves too much when tapped, the custard has not fully baked or set yet.”
Cool, then refrigerate until serving time. Remove from ramekins to plate the finished dessert.
Pro tip: Poking a hole in the bottom of the aluminum ramekin can help loosen a stuck flan.
Customshop
Location: 1601 Elizabeth Ave, Charlotte, NC 28204
Cuisine: American, Italian, seafood
Instagram: @customshopclt
This story was originally published April 17, 2023 at 6:00 AM.
