Serves 8
Is there a place in the world where this creamy dessert hasn’t left its mark? Flan is a sweet way to celebrate everything and nothing at all, and in Peru you can find it wherever you go. We call this vanilla-flavored custard crema volteada (literally “upside down cream”).
1 cup white sugar
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 12-ounce can evaporated milk
6 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1. Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
2. Heat the sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until it melts and forms a liquid caramel. Be careful not to let it burn because it will taste bitter.
3. Carefully pour the hot caramel into 8 ramekins, rotating them to cover the entire inner surface with the caramel. Be very careful with your fingers, and don´t even dream of tasting it with your tongue. Hot caramel is extremely dangerous.
4. Process the condensed milk, evaporated milk, eggs, and vanilla in a blender. Pour this into the prepared ramekins.
5. Put them inside a larger pan with about 1-inch of hot water.
6. Bake in this water bath for 40 minutes. Take out of the larger pan and transfer to a rack to cool completely.
7. If you have the time, keep refrigerated for several hours (or overnight) to loosen the caramel.
8. When ready to serve, run a knife around the edge of each ramekin, cover with a dish, and turn upside down.
9. Keep refrigerated.
10. You can make this f lan in a 9-inch round baking pan, and bake for one hour.
To soften the hard caramel that remains at the bottom of the pan after unmolding the f lan, put the empty baking pan over medium heat with ⅓ cup of water in it. Stir with a spoon until it becomes liquid again, and pour over the f lan.