ISO: ISO your favorite Flans (not too difficult, 'cause it is me we are talking about!) more

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schmellen

Enthusiast Member
I want to make some mini flans here at the shop. Can flan be cooked in the convection oven?

I already have people wanting them tonight and I barely mentioned it. Yipes! I don't want to have to go buy sugar shack flan and put it in our bowls...

thanks, or should I say, gracias

 
Schmellen...it didn't work well in my convection...the air blew the

custard around too much and it firmed up looking rather goofy. I was making a batch of 10 flans for a church group and tried to save time by putting one in my convection. Needless to say, we ate that one.

Lar and I actually prefer the creamcheese and condensed milk version to the pure custard made with egg & milk. It's quick, it's easy and works perfectly every time, always a big bonus in my opinion.

Date: Mon, 01 Jan 2001 23:09:04 GMT
From: Marilyn in FL (@216.97.206.28 ())

Recipe: Elena's Flan...an exercise in simplicity

I used to work with Elena, a woman with hair
so gorgeous that the rest of us mere mortals
just gave in and accepted Bad Hair as an
inevitability.

Dark, natural, Botticelli-ish corkscrew curls
fell about her shoulders--it was cruelity
itself to be in the Humidity/Frizz Capital of
the world and sit near her. Personally, I'm of
the opinion that no one should have that much
luck with DNA.

But then, she'd bring in this dish and
suddenly, she was just a nice woman with
INCREDIBLE FLAN.

Turn oven to 350 degrees.

In a heavy pot, melt 3/4 cup sugar till
caramel colored. Watch carefully. When
liquid, immediately pour into either a 9"
round cake pan or an 8" square pan. Set
aside.

In a blender, whirl the following:
5 eggs
1 8-oz cream cheese, regular style
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 can water (using empty can)
1 tsp vanilla

Pour over hardened sugar.

Bake for 1 hour in water bath until the top gets
golden. For those who like even creamier
flan, bake for 45 minutes. The center won't cut as clean, but you won't care.

After pan is cool, refrigerate for 3+ hours.

When ready to serve, run a thin knife around
the rim, and flip onto a plate. Choose the
plate carefully. The sugar, having softened
again, will be runny. Use a serving dish with
a small rim.

(Personally, I don't like the extra liquid
sugar, so I usually just pour it off when
plating the dessert. I'm sure you can get
shot for that indiscretion in certain countries.)

Here's a turbo-charged version ala "The Chart
House" restaurant: Cut a wedge of flan (or
creme brulee), top with warm hot fudge, then
with bananas sliced on the diagonal, then
sprinkle on sugar and broil till bubblely.
Die happy.

Stays beautifully in the frig.

 
ahhhhhhh, botticelli curls...if only. Do you think...

if I covered it with tin foil that would help? I only have a convection here at the shop.
thanks
FlaSchmellen

 
Test's over. It works best with foil. ...

I mixed up a batch and then tested it in three containers. A small 4" glass Corningware, a 6" glass Corningware and a onion soup 4" crock bowl with a rim. I covered the 6" with foil, no venting. I covered the 4" with Glad Wrap, but cut slits. I left the crock bowl uncovered. All were filled to the same height to ensure even timing.
I put all three in a large baking pan and poured hot water half way up, baked at 325 (dropping the recipe temperature by 25 points to compensate for the convection oven.)

My original convection attempt used an uncovered 9" disposable foil pan with no rim. The batter filled to the top and it firmed up in a swirled pattern. I know that sounds potentially charming, but it wasn't.

Test results: The foil-covered dish looks fine...not golden, but definitely cooked through. The surface is not as smooth as normal, but since it flips, I don't think that's an issue. The slits in the Glad Wrap caused the wrapping to blow right off. That custard got very brown, but tastes fine.

The uncovered crock had the same level of brown-ness and again, the custard was fine. I think the high rim protected the wet custard until it set.

I just tasted it--good...custardy, but remember that the flavor needs to develop. It's not as good warm as it is chilled.

Give it a try and see what you think. There are one cup disposable pans/cups that would work. Our local Puerto Rican restaurant uses plastic glasses, like the type you use for drinks at a party.

 
Well, that looks like another experiment, huh....

The restaurant has single servings in a refrigerated case behind the counter and, to my eyes, they look exactly like 3" high plastic hi-ball glasses.

I'll give it a try on the next flan batch. I know I have some of those glasses in my pantry somewhere.

 
ah, Dr. Marilyn, you are very wise...

my experiment was a qualified disaster. My caramel didn't brown, the flan didn't plop out of the little ramekins, all sorts of sorrow and sadness. But...since I am my mother's daughter, nothing gets thrown away. I made a graham cracker crust, mixed the custardy disaster with vanilla ice cream, and voila, sold it as frozen custard cream pie...
I am writing down your stuff so I can do better next time. Thanks so much!

 
Which recipe did you use, S? I've never had a problem

flipping the flans out of the pan, whether it be glass, aluminum or toss-away foils. Run a knife around the edge just in case and hold that plate on tight as you flip.

By the way, I didn't bother with the caramelized sugar for the test ones, although I've never had a problem preparing it. The recipe originally called for 1/2 C but it was easier to cover the bottoms of the flan pan by using 3/4 C of sugar. I used a teflon-coated saute pan--there is a very quick point when it goes from "melting sugar" to "brown" sugar so watch carefully and have your flan pan ready to receive the sugar. Quickly tip the pan to coat as it starts to firm up immediately and look like brown stained glass. It may crack when when you pour in the batter, but don't worry. It all smooths out in the end. It's only a few minutes worth of cook-top time...not like making a large batch of caramel.

Clever idea with the substitution!

 
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