One of my favorite things to eat and make is “flan de queso” (cheese custard).
Flan is a very popular dessert in Puerto Rico and in other Latin countries. It is kind of a sweet egg custard dessert. There’s a wide variety of this dessert and all of them are very unique. The most popular ones in Puerto Rico are the cheese, vanilla and coconut flan.
I’ve been making flan for several years now. In the process I have tried many recipes and finally found one that is delicious and super easy. My base recipe is from the blog “Los Inventos de Liza”, Flan de Queso. I have made little changes over time to this recipe to satisfy my taste, but not much.
This recipe is simple and you can make it with your kids. As you may know Isabella loves to cook and recently she helped me for the first time to make a cheese flan. We took the flan to one of our friends house and Isabella was very proud of the final result and of course I told everyone she helped me make it.
Here is the recipe with few of my tips
Ingredients:
For thecaramel:
2 cups ofsugar
1 ½ cups ofwater
For the flan:
1 can ofevaporated milk
1 can ofcondensed milk
1 tsp ofvanilla
5 eggs
1 package ofcream cheese (room tempeture)
1/2 cup ofsugar
Procedure for the Caramel
Start by making the caramel. I strongly recommend that in this part you don’t involve your kids. Because the caramel gets extremely hot and is better to avoid any accidents.
In a medium saucepan, over medium to high heat combinethe two cups of sugar, 1 ½ of water and a few drops of fresh squeezed lemon juice (You will see different ratios between water and sugar for the caramel. This is the ratio that works for me. I suggest you to try it out but if this is not what you like keep adjusting until you find the perfect one).
The amount of time to accomplish the caramel can vary between 15 to 25 minutes. I really don’t time it, I just do it by eye and by constantly checking the color and consistency of it. Once it starts boiling the consistency starts changing to a more syrupy one and the color starts to change as well. When you see that golden caramel color, remove it quickly from the stove, we don’t want to burn it, and then pour into the glass mold.
For this recipe I’m using a glass mold 8×8 and 2 inches tall.
Pre heat theoven to 350 degrees.
Procedure for the Flan
This is the fun part, so bring the kids on board!
With the help of my lovely daughter, I start by mixing the liquids first. Pour in the evaporated milk, condensed milk and the vanilla in the blender for about 30 seconds. Add the eggs and mix for about 2 minutes. Time to add the cream cheese! After it is soft, I cut it in small cubes and add it to the blender in two different batches. Blend each time between 2 and 3 minutes. I do this to make sure I don’t leave behind any cheese lumps.
The last step for me is the sugar. I suggest to start with ½ cup, taste and then decide if you want to add more or not. I like my flan very sweet, so I add more sugar but I think this amount is a good start. Mix for about two more minutes and then pour into the glass mold. Before pouring, check for any cheese lumps and if necessary mix for extra time.
The flan needs to be baked in a bain marie, so be sure to have everything ready before pouring the mixture in the mold.
Bake for about an hour and half. Check consistency and color at the hour mark, insert a knife or a baking stick in the center and if it comes clean it is ready. After it is ready let flan completely cool down and then refrigerate overnight.
The next daybefore serving you will need to flip the flan to a serving plate. I use asimple process that works great for me and hopefully it works for you too!
- Run a butter knife completely around the edge of the pan and flan.
- Set the pan in one inch of warm water to slightly loosen the caramel.
- Use a nice serving dish slightly larger than the pan used to cook the flan in.
- Put the serving dish upside down over the flan and then flip both the pan and serving dish over.
- If you are lucky it will come right out, but sometimes you need to tap on it a couple of times.
- Make sure you scrape the bottom of the pan to get all of the delicious caramel out!
Like Mother,Like Daughter
When I was little I remember that when my mom was making flan I was always beside her, but not only to help her. I wanted the can of condensed milk and a spoon so I can eat whatever was left in the can. Until this day I still love doing that. And guess what now that Isabella is helping out she discovered the condensed milk as well and she loves it too, so now I share it with her.
Food brings so much to the table, there’s the flavors of course but also the memories, traditions and so many happy moments. Try this flan recipe with your kids and let me know how it goes!
Buen provecho!
