The first time I tasted this homemade flan, with its luscious, creamy custard and rich, amber caramel, I was blown away. Curiously, as I eagerly began ordering flan, I ended up disappointed by the more jello-like consistency of restaurant flan desserts. Fortunately, the recipe given to my husband by a friend from Puerto Rico is pretty simple, with only five ingredients.

Flan with fresh blueberries

Years ago, at a potluck party, our friend Javier brought a pyrex glass baking dish containing an unassuming golden yellow dessert. I almost passed on the opportunity to taste it, as I had not yet discovered my sweet tooth. Upon spooning out the first piece, I realized that the soft creamy custard covered and hid a beautiful, clear amber-brown sauce. This was my first taste of pure homemade caramel. Once we had a bite of this flan, we were ruined for future restaurant-style flan desserts. They were all more beautifully presented, yet were disappointingly thinner in flavor and a bit too jello-ish.

Of course, we asked Javier for the recipe. He warned us that there is no point making this dessert using reduced fat versions of any of the ingredients. 

Emailed recipe after we lost the first one. My husband is not a spelling whiz...

The hardest part is to be disciplined to pay attention continuously as the sugar is caramelizing. After the caramelized sugar solidifies in the pan, the other ingredients are simply blended and poured on top. A larger pan suffices as a homemade bain marie. Once, we forgot the water bath -- it is absolutely necessary to achieve that silky, smooth creamy texture. Once baked, the flan can be kept for up to a week refrigerated before serving. In fact, I later read that an adequate chilling time (generally 24-48 h) is essential for allowing the caramel to magically transform from a hard, glassy layer to a perfectly drizzly golden-brown sauce. 

There's something magical about how that solid, glassy amber layer transforms by itself, unseen below the custard, into a perfectly textured caramel sauce, slightly viscous and ultimately drizzleable.

At its heart, a flan is a custard. Custards contain egg and milk or cream, with both sweet and savory versions. The quiche is probably the most famous savory custard. Dessert custards include flan and creme brulee. A custard base is also what makes bread pudding so delicious.

Monterey Bay Fish Grotto serves a consistently superb creme brulee. Note the glassy smooth layer of browned sugar.

We have made creme brulee, but it is not easy with home torches to flame the sugar just right -- browned (not blackened) sugar granules melted together to form a continuous browned crust, yet cracking easily enough to not squash the underlying custard. 

Creme brulee at Mary's Vine - the crust was still a bit grainy rather than glassy; the professionals can't always get it right either.

The caramel sauce on the flan is arguably tastier, and certainly easier to get perfect. 

As mentioned above, I did not grow up loving sweets, aside from the occasional ice cream and pound cake. However, this flan, the brown butter bourbon cookies discovered by our daughter, and my husband's family hot fudge ice cream topping rank among my favorite desserts. Fortunately, the recipe is quite simple.

Flan cook-offs & regional variation

My husband entered a flan cook-off at work in 2017, and this flan won handily. In true scientific style, the identity of the persons that made each flan were concealed until after everyone had submitted their rankings.

A discussion of the ingredients then ensued, as this flan has a richer, creamier texture than is typical. Purists insisted that flan should only have egg, milk and sugar (albeit the milk is usually in the form of sweetened condensed or evaporated milk). A year or so later, a co-worker from Mexico finally cleared up the mystery. According to him, there is a major difference between Spanish style flans from the old world and those made in Latin America. That difference lies in the inclusion of cream cheese or heavy cream in American flans.

With the arrival of another new co-worker from Mexico, my husband was finally dethroned in another cookoff this year -- but not, I believe because of flavor and texture, but because of presentation. Whereas we had always made the flan in a 11-12" x 7.5" (82.5-90 sq. inches) glass dish, and let the guests scoop their servings out of the baking dish, the co-worker's wife made her flan in a smaller oval dish, and then inverted the dish onto a platter for serving. 

Our method is easier to transport, serve, re-refrigerate and then spoon out little snacks until gone. It is completely low stress and delicious. But the flan really does look more impressive turned out on a platter. I will note that I believe Javier's recipe still edges out this new Mexican flan in texture -- it is a trace creamier and a tiny bit less like jello. But the Mexican homemade flan and a flan we enjoyed once at Dish Osteria remain as the only two other perfect flan experiences without a hint of disappointment.

Dish Osteria & Bar - Flan di Zucca

Over Labor Day, my husband made a double recipe of Javier's flan in a 9 x 13" glass dish (117 sq. inches). This was the best version ever, and we concluded that making a taller flan is advantageous from an aesthetic and textural point of view. Next time, we may try the single recipe in a smaller 8 or 9 inch round pan (50.3-63.6 sq. inches).

Taller flan from a double recipe baked in a 9 x 13" pan

Javier's Flan Recipe

~1 cup of white sugar

4 eggs

8 oz (w) cream cheese

14 oz (w) can of sweetened condensed milk

12 oz (v) can of evaporated milk

Note: must be full fat versions

Preheat oven to 375°F.

1. Melt and Caramelize Sugar

Place sugar by itself in a clean, medium saucepan. Heat on low to medium heat, stirring continuously, until sugar is caramelized. The color should be that of a medium to medium-dark caramel. 

Pour melted, browned sugar into a baking pan and allow to cool. Ideally, enlist a helper whose job is to tilt the pan so the caramel spreads over the bottom before it solidifies. 

2. Prepare the Custard

Blend the remaining ingredients in a blender and pour over the solidified sugar. If making a double batch, suggest blending 1X recipe at a time, adding sequentially to the pan.

3. Bake and Chill

Place the baking pan into a larger baking pan and add water to about half of its height to act as a double boiler. Bake 45-60 min. 

Chill at least overnight (24-48 h may be better). Garnish with chilled berries if desired.

🐾 Be careful not to burn yourself or your helper as the sugar will be very hot.

🐾 If making a double batch, suggest blending 1X recipe at a time, adding sequentially to the pan.

DID YOU TRY THIS RECIPE?

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