Growing up, one of my favorite aunts was known for her homemade leche flan. We always waited for her to arrive at a party because we knew it would be baked to creamy perfection. This recipe is an ode to my Tita Belen for her rich and delicious leche flan.
What is leche flan?
Leche flan was introduced to the Philippines during Spanish colonization and came by way of what’s known as creme caramel–a custard dessert with a clear caramel topping. The name leche flan is translated into “milk custard,” and is often much richer than Spanish flan because it includes more egg yolks, condensed milk, and is steamed. Since there is an addition of milk, it’s texture is much more jiggly and pudding-like than French flan. It’s commonly eaten during parties and celebratory events in Filipino culture. These days you can find leche flan in many different flavors like coconut, ube, and even added with other desserts like chiffon cake, cheesecake or on top of halo halo.
Leche flan molds–the llanera
Traditionally, leche flan made in the shape of an oval and is made in aluminum molds called llanera. I was lucky to find these molds at my local Seafood City. They’re lightweight and often recycled from old aluminum containers. If you can’t find a llanera, you can also use other types of pans or molds, for instance, a cake mold or mini tart molds. Note that the size of the mold will affect the baking time frame for each leche flan. Since we cook the leche flan in a water bath inside a larger pan, I would stick with a smaller sized mold so that it fits inside the water bath pan.
How to caramelize sugar for leche flan
- To make the caramel topping, first you add the sugar directly into the mold.
- Slowly heat the mold over the stove over about medium heat until it turns into a golden syrup.
- The sugar will start to melt. Keep moving the mold around the heat, on a low enough heat setting so you can melt the sugar completely and brown it, but without burning it. concentrate the heat under areas where the sugar hasn’t melted, or where the sugar hasn’t darkened enough.
- Here’s how dark the caramel should look when finished. After cooling on the counter, this will act as a nice base for the leche flan and give it an extra sweet topping when cooked.
Egg yolks, condensed and evaporated milk
Many recipes for leche flan, like this one, uses only egg yolks omitting the egg whites, which gives the custard a very rich texture. The condensed milk and evaporated milk combo gives the leche flan a fattier and sweet flavor compared to regular cow’s milk. To get an even smoother finish, I like to strain the mixture using a metal seive before pouring them into molds to remove lumps from the egg yolks.
The water bath / bain marie
Baking the leche flan in a water bath, or “bain marie” in French, is necessary to get a creamy texture. It’s basically a heated bath to cook your dish, but historically it comes from an early alchemist named Mary from the 1st century, who made an early heated bath invention. It’s also similar baking method to cheesecake or other custards that have ingredients with egg yolks or other forms of custard. Having water around the custard molds or ramekins allows for uniform and even cooking through the baking process. To make a water bath, wrap the llanera with foil to prevent water from coming into the molds and place the llanera into the larger pan, then fill it with hot water. The hot water inside the oven keeps a more stable level of moisture in the air and heat for the custard. This prevents the leche flan from becoming rubbery in texture and overcooking too fast.
Cooking tips
Serving
To serve the leche flan, remove it from the mold from the fridge and use a sharp knife to trace alongside the edge of the llanera to release the custard. Take your serving plate and turn it upside down and on top of the mold. Quickly turn the plate and mold upside down and carefully tap the mold to release the leche flan. Serve the leche flan immediately. I like it best with a cup of hot milk tea or Vietnamese coconut coffee.
What is leche flan in English?
Leche flan translates to “milk custard” in English.
What will happen if leche flan is overcooked?
If leche flan is overcooked, the texture turns very rubbery and it begins to harden. To prevent overcooking, bake the leche flan in a water bath to add moisture into the oven and slow down the baking process.
What is the difference between Mexican flan and Filipino flan?
Mexican flan is sometimes known as flan Napolitino that often includes cream cheese as an ingredient, whereas leche flan adds egg yolks, condensed milk, and evaporated milk.
