Flan

Flan is a baked egg custard with caramel in the bottom. It turned out of its baking dish and served upside down. According to the classic cookbook "Joy of Cooking" (from which this recipe was taken), "flan is the preeminent dessert of Spain and Latin America. It is also a favorite in France, where it is known as crème caramel." Interestingly, I first encountered flan when I was living in Japan. Like most desserts that you find in Japan (and in contrast to most American desserts), flan is more subtly sweet (not in-your-face sugar, sugar, sugar). I appreciated the subtle sweetness of desserts in Japan and was excited to find this recipe. Please don't be intimidated by the length of these instructions. It turned out to be much easier to make than I would have guessed--and just as delicious as I remembered!

Preheat oven to 325°F. Have ready eight 6-ounce custard cups or ramekins (I used four 7-ounce and two 16-ounce ramekins because that is what our corningware set contains) or a 2- to 2½-quart soufflé dish.

Flan, like other custards, should be cooked in a water bath to allow equal distribution of heat. To do this: Find one or two larger pans (like casserole dishes or 9x13 in. baking pans) that will hold the dishes you are using for the flan. Place a dish towel or several layer of paper towels in the bottom of the pan (this helps protect the bottom of the custard dish from direct heat). Partially fill the pan with water, such that when the custard dishes are placed in the pan the water comes 1/2 to 2/3 of the way up the custard dishes.

To prepare caramel in the dishes, combine the following in a small heavy saucepan:

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup water

Cook over medium heat without stirring, very gently swirling the pan, until the sugar is dissolved. Do not allow the mixture to boil until after sugar is dissolved, so slide the pan on and off the burner as necessary. Once sugar is dissolved increase the heat to high and bring the syrup to a rolling boil; cover the pan tightly and boil for 2 minutes. Uncover the pan and cook until the syrup begins to caramelize, or darken. Gently stir once again and cook until the caramel syrup turns a deep amber (or light brown or golden) color.

Quickly pour the caramel syrup into the dishes. Immediately tilt the dishes to spread the caramel over the bottom and halfway up the sides. It is important to do this quickly for two reasons: 1) the caramel will continue to cook and quickly turn darker and darker while it is still in the pan, so you want to get it out of the pan and into the dishes before it gets too dark; 2) the caramel will harden quickly as it cools, so you want to spread it around in the dish before it becomes too hard. So if there is someone available to help you, I recommend having one person quickly pour the caramel into the dishes and a second person tilt the dishes to spread the caramel.

To prepare the custard, whisk (or use handmixer on low speed) the following in a large bowl until blended:

• 4 large eggs plus 2 large egg yolks (or 5 large eggs)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/8 tsp. salt

Heat the following in a medium saucepan over medium heat until just steaming:

• 3 cups whole milk (if you normally just buy skim milk like me, you can use 3/4 cups half-and-half, 2 1/4 cups skim milk)

Remove from heat and gradually whisk (or beat on low speed) the milk into the egg mixture and stir gently until the sugar is dissolved. It is important to do this gradually; if you pour too much hot milk in at once, it can cause the egg to cook and leave some lumps in the custard. I didn't find the following step necessary, but for extra smooth custard: Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into another bowl or measure with a pouring lip.

Stir in the following:

• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Pour into the caramel-lined dishes. Place the dishes into the prepared pans containing the water, being careful not to allow water to splash into the custard. Bake in 325°F oven in water bath for 40-60 minutes for individual cups, 60-90 minutes for a single dish, or until firmly set in the center. To test for doneness, gently shake dish; custard is done if the center appears quivery, like firm gelatin. Alternatively, insert a knife near the edge of the dish; if the blade comes out clean, the custard is ready to be removed. There is enough heat stored in the dishes that the custard will continue to set as it cools.

Remove from oven and cool on a rack; then cover each dish tightly with plastic wrap and chill in refrigerator for at least 4 hours before serving.

To unmold and serve, dip the cups or dish briefly in hot water, loosen the edges of the flan with a knife, and invert onto plates. Enjoy!