Caramel Flan (Creme Caramel)

Rich and creamy, this caramel flan cake is a sweet custard topped with clear caramel sauce. A sweet indulgence in summer days that you’ll ever need!

This creme caramel reminisces about my childhood memories. Back to when I was still a little kid, we had been looking forward to seeing a peddler with her traveling vendor of goods. For me and other kids in my neighborhood, what she had in her vendor were luxuries and being able to afford some of them was like a dream for all of us. Being not-a-high-income-family, of course, my parents would not give us much money to buy so we had to save for a few days until we had enough for one item in a peddler’s basket. And one sweet treat that I’ve been wanting the most was creme caramel served in small plastic ramekin.

Growing up, we moved to another neighborhood, and it was less likely to see those peddlers travelling around. I was upset for days after and told my mom that I missed her food items, especially creme caramel. And mom decided to get back to her kitchen and make me a big bowl of that cake that I would never forget. It was so delicious and tasted way better than the pedder’s. Now I can be confident to make these creme caramel myself, but those childhood memories will forever stay in my heart.

CREME CARAMEL

It’s a delicate and rich custard made of cream, eggs, sugar and milk. It has a crystallized caramel syrup on top and will serve with the custard in every bite. The batter will be baked to perfection in a water bath until it’s set around the edges but still jiggly in the set. The custard will continue to cook while it cools down and it’s best served cold. 

WATER BATH 

Baking caramel flan in a water bath will help the custard stay moist and cream. Water bath will keep the custard from cooking too fast, which eventually causes cracks in custard and gives bubbles to the texture. Some recipes call for a steaming method which is usually done but I found that caramel flan turns out smooth and velvety when it’s baked in a water bath. 

CARAMEL FLAN INGREDIENTS

To make caramel flan you will need:

Cream and milk: I will use both heavy cream and milk with a 3:1 ratio. For the richest flavor using only cream is suggested. 

Eggs: In custard, the more egg yolk you use, the creamier and richer the custard will be. Egg yolk also helps contribute the very nice color to the flan. For the 6-inch round cake pan I would prefer using 4 egg yolks and 2 whole eggs. If you prefer to use more eggs, it would be fine, but the texture will be denser and more eggy taste. 

Sweetened condensed milk/Sugar: Since flan has a layer of clear caramel on top, half of 14-ounce sweetened condensed milk (equals to 198g) works perfectly for the sweetness of flan. It will be sweeter if you use full can. Condense milk adds the creaminess to texture but it is ok if you substitute with granulated sugar for this recipe. Vanilla: Using vanilla extract will not only enhance the flavor but also give a better color to this dessert

THE SECRET TO MAKE BUBBLE-FREE, CREAMY AND SMOOTH CARAMEL FLAN 

• Start with room temperature eggs. By doing this, warm milk is less likely to cook the eggs.
• Carefully place eggs and whisk eggs one side, either clockwise or counterclockwise. I would help prevent bubbles from forming in a mixing process.
• Strain the custard mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to remove any bits of curdled eggs. This will help give a silky and smooth texture in the finished caramel flan cake.
• Caramelizing sugar is tricky but it’s not hard. All you need to do is heat the sugar in a saucepan until it melts and turns honey color. You don’t need to add water because the sugar will caramelize on its own without any added water. 
• Bake the flan in a water bath (read my note above)
• Use a sharp knife to slide around the edges of the pan to easily remove it. 

More Custard Recipes:

• Pastry Cream (Creme Patissiere)
• Matcha Caramel Flan