Flan can refer to two different things: either a baked custard dessert topped with caramel similar to the French crème caramel, or a tart-like sweet pastry with a filling called a fruit flan.
What is a Dessert Flan?
A dessert flan is made of eggs; sweetened condensed milk, cream or whole milk; and flavorings such as vanilla, orange, coconut, or coffee. Because egg-based custard is delicate, flan is baked in a water bath in the oven.
What is a Fruit Flan?
A fruit flan is typically baked in a special metal flan ring with straight sides. Unlike a tart or a cake pan, a flan ring does not have a bottom, which makes it easier to unmold. A flan ring needs to be placed on a baking sheet for baking. The baked pastry shell is then topped with pastry cream and fresh fruit such as strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, apricots, or peaches or combinations thereof.
What Country is Flan from?
Flan is a popular dessert in Spain and Latin America, and its name and not so much its preparation varies from country to country.
Flan napolitano is another name for Mexican flan with a caramel layer on the bottom that is inverted onto a serving plate so the caramel is on top. It's quite similar to Spanish flan, and that's not surprising because the Spanish originally brought the flan to Mexico, from where it spread all over Latin America.
In Mexico and Central America, flan can be made with fresh milk or with condensed milk. Cuban flan uses only evaporated and condensed milk from cans because fresh milk is not readily available there.
Leche flan is the Filipino version of flan similar to Mexican flan.
Flan de queso is a Latin American flan variation made with cream cheese that can also be flavored with coconut.
What is the Difference Between a Flan and a Quiche?
While there are also savory flans made with eggs, vegetable puree and often cheese (Italian sformato is a type of flan) flans are usually sweet and served for dessert. Quiche, on the other hand, is always savory. And a quiche pan, unlike a flan ring, always has a bottom.
What is the Difference between Flan and Crème Brulee?
In flan, the caramel top is soft and liquid whereas in crème brulee, it is a layer of hardened caramelized sugar that requires a crème brulee torch to make.
Some Favorite Flan Recipes
Here are some of our top-rated flan recipes. For more on how to make this cool, custardy dessert, check out Perfect Flan.
Add homemade caramel to a flan mold and then fill with an easy custard mixture and bake in a water bath. "The Venezuelan quesillo recipe, pronounced ke-see-yo, has bounced around our family since as long as I can remember," says imgoingbananas.
"A cheesecake-like custard bakes over a layer of caramel in my attempt at making flan that tastes like cheesecake," says Chef John. "Much to my (pleasant) surprise, I ended up with a flan-flavored cheesecake instead, thanks to the power of caramelized sugar. Careful, that thin layer of caramel can be overpowering. Whether or not you make a successful graham cracker crust topping, I hope you give this gorgeous recipe a try soon."
"A beautiful fresh fruit dessert, this is not your regular 'fruit pizza,'" says Aunt Jeannie. "You can substitute your favorite fruits or berries for those in this recipe."
The Roman Empire is the true origin of this dessert. The word flan is the French equivalent of the Latin word fladon, which comes from the Old High German word “flado,” meaning “flat cake.” Flan was once a savory dish, usually made from fish or meat. Today, the dessert has evolved into something sweet.
As the Roman Empire expanded throughout Europe, new variations of flan were created. The region of Spain today is where the classic sweet caramel sauce version was introduced. Eventually, Spain brought the recipe to the New World, specifically to the south of Mexico.
What does it taste like? Flan has a rich, toasted sugar caramel flavor from the topping and the base tastes very milky, perfectly sweet and lightly eggy. It is similar to creme brulee or panna cotta in taste, but texturally the three are quite different.
Despite its gelatinous appearance and texture, there is no gelatin in flan. Flan gets its distinctive texture from fat and protein-rich ingredients such as eggs and a long slow water bath bake.
The word flan stems from the Old High German word for “flat cake”, which describes it perfectly. The ingredients of flan are very simple, though many modern variations have been created. Traditionally, flan consists simply of eggs, dairy, and sugar, making it a custard.
You can keep it for less than a week. After three or four days, it begins to curdle and separate. It isn't bad for you t that point, t just doesn't taste as good. Fortunately, flan is very tasty, so it never really gets a chance to sit around that long in my house.
Spaniards brought flan to Mexico during Spanish conquest and occupation. Since then it's become a truly beloved dish among Mexicans in all regions of the country. Most people consider flan a dessert, but more and more people are finding excuses to eat it at all times of the day.
Flan does contain high amount of calcium but the cholesterol and amount of sugar over powers the calcium benefits. One serving (3.5 oz / 100g) of flan has close to 36 grams sugar. It is and seem quite high until you compare it with a can of soda which contains about 44g of sugar.
It's great served warm or cold and has a delicate creamy texture like custard. Slice the flan and spoon a little of the melted sugar onto the top of each slice.
The croustade, crostata, galette, tarte tatin and turnovers are various types of pies and tarts. Flan, in Britain, is an open pastry or sponge case containing a sweet or savory filling. A typical flan of this sort is round, with shortcrust pastry.
Creamy, velvety flan is one of the world's most popular desserts, and it's easy to see why. Made from straightforward ingredients, it has a spoonable, rich texture and it bakes up with its own irresistible caramel sauce on top.
Crème brûlée is a baked custard made with cream, sugar and egg yolks with a thin layer of sugar on top that is caramelized with a kitchen torch to create a hard caramel crust. Flan is also a custard made with cream, milk, sugar and egg yolks, but it's baked in a caramel-lined ramekin until soft and jiggly.
What's the Difference Between Flan and Quiche? Flan, in the British sense, is an open-faced pie or tart with a savory or sweet filling. This can include egg-based pies also called quiche. Quiche is a French dish that is a savory egg tart and can include other fillings like ham, cheese, and vegetables.
Crème caramel (French: [kʁɛm kaʁamɛl]), flan, caramel pudding, condensed milk pudding or caramel custard is a custard dessert with a layer of clear caramel sauce.
Flan was adopted as an international dessert of the “La Raza” movement by Latinos, Central Americans & North Americans alike. The Mexicans, particularly, made flan a part of their everyday food.
Flan Pâtissier is a French custard tart that is made with a pastry crust filled with vanilla custard and baked. Also known as Parisian Flan, you'll find it in every suburban bakery all across France.
The Spanish brought flan to the Americas during the colonial period, and it quickly became a staple in Latin American cuisine. Today, flan is especially popular in Mexico, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and many other Latin countries, each with its own regional variations.
Flan is a classic Puerto Rican dessert (also known as an egg custard to many) and is made with a milk and egg base. What is this? Traditionally, this custard is poured over a caramelized sugar base, baked and flipped upside down to reveal a beautiful caramel topping.
When it comes to crème brûlée and flan, it's mostly the toppings that distinguishes the two, as well as the presentation. The former has that signature crackly sugar crust on top, and the latter has the gooey, soft caramel top.
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