An authentic recipe for flan; a super easy, creamy custard made simply with eggs, sweetened condensed milk, and ricotta cheese dripping in caramel sauce. Serve with hunks of tender anise-scented stewed rhubarb for a beautiful spring dessert– the best! Naturally gluten-free!
Spring is such a lovely time for desserts.
Maybe it’s all the special occasions like Mother’s Day, Easter…. my birthday that call for a beautiful treat to end the celebration.
I realize not everyone celebrates my birthday, but the warm spring breezes are reason enough to whip up a flan in my opinion.
what is flan?
Flan is a gorgeous silky custard that looks tricky but is surprisingly simple to make.
It has a layer of caramel on top and a cool, creamy vanilla-flavored base on the bottom. It can be made in any ol’ pan you have. Or in individual dishes for a personalized dessert if you’re feeling fancy.
Many flan recipes are simply the egg custard but I love the addition of cheese that is common in many Mexican flan recipes. Mely adds cream cheese to her Mexican flan and I’ve seen other recipes using mascarpone.
I wanted that extra tangy flavor but with a lighter texture than cream cheese or mascarpone. After a few experiments I settled on fluffy whole milk ricotta.
Some people may turn their nose up at adding cheese to flan (in fact quite a few people according to my informal Instagram poll) but I wouldn’t make flan without it.
It creates the perfect balance of sweetness and richness without the overwhelming mustiness from the egg yolks.
In other words, no cheese equals too much egg flavor in my book.
Flan is wonderful on its own but also goes great with other flavors.
Maybe it’s the midwesterner in me, but it is not spring without rhubarb so I topped mine with a quick compote of rhubarb, orange zest, and anise seed.
This is completely optional but it’s a nice way to balance out the sweetness of the flan. You could also use other spring fruits like strawberries, blackberries, or raspberries.
ingredients
Flan is deceptively simple and requires less than 10 ingredients to make it. If you want to also make the rhubarb compote you’ll need a few more things.
for the flan:
- Granulated sugar. This is to make the caramel that goes into the bottom of the pan
- Water. Again for the caramel.
- Large eggs
- 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 12-ounce can evaporated milk
- Vanilla extract
- Whole milk ricotta cheese
for the rhubarb:
- Fresh or frozen rhubarb. If you use frozen, you won’t need to thaw it out first but you will want to cook it longer as frozen rhubarb tends to be tougher.
- Anise seed or star anise pods
- The juice and zest from 1 orange.
- Granulated sugar
what kind of pan to use
The first step is to figure out what kind of baking dish you will use to bake the flan. Here are some options:
- I used a long loaf pan for a skinnier flan.
- A regular 9×5 loaf pan would make a thicker, rectangular-shaped flan.
- 9-inch cake pan
- Individual 4 ounce ramekins (you will need 8)
- Tube or Bundt baking pan that has a 10 cup capacity, just make sure it doesn’t have a removable bottom.
- Basically any pan EXCEPT a springform pan which will leak
how to make the flan
I honestly thought flan was much harder to make than it actually is. The only thing to consider is the amount of time it needs to chill before you can serve it.
Make the flan a day in advance for best results.
Let’s start by making the caramel. Spread 1 cup of sugar in an even layer in a medium saucepan or medium frying pan (I prefer using the frying pan).
Add 1/4 cup water and cook over medium high heat, swirling the pan only as much as necessary to stir the sugar so it cooks evenly. Make sure to not get too much sugar on the side of the pan if you are using a saucepan.
When the sugar turns a deep amber and begins to smoke remove from heat and pour into the baking pan. Tilt to coat the bottom evenly. Let cool.
Heat oven to 325°F. Place baking pan with the caramel into a larger baking dish or roasting pan. Put a kettle of water on to boil.
Blend the remaining flan ingredients in a blender.
Pour flan custard over the caramel.
To create the hot water bath: Pour boiling water into the larger baking dish so it comes halfway up the sides of the flan pan.
Bake 45-55 minutes or until custard is mostly set but still a little giggly in the middle.
Let flan rest inside the hot water bath for 15 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to let cool completely.
Refrigerate overnight then run a sharp knife around the edge of the pan and turn out onto a serving platter.
to make the rhubarb compote
I wish I could’ve found ruby red rhubarb like I grew up eating in Iowa but I what my rhubarb lacked in color it made up for in sweet-tart flavor.
To make the compote is really easy. Just combine all the ingredients in a large frying pan and bring it to a simmer until the rhubarb is tender.
more easy dessert recipes to try!
- Soft Ricotta Banana Bread
- No-Churn Cream Cheese Ice Cream
- Chocolate Chip Coffee Bean Cookies
- Key Lime Pie with Sour Cream Topping
- Mexican Sprinkle Cookies
- Homemade Pistachio Mazapan
- Salted Cookies and Cream Paletas
- Flan de Jamaica {Hibiscus Flan}
the easiest dessert you’ve never made
If you’ve never made flan before, you MUST try it! You really won’t believe how simple it is. Let me know what you end up making by snapping a pic and tagging me on Instagram @holajalapeno and #holajalapeno so I can see or leave me a comment below (don’t forget to leave a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating) ! Also, don’t forget to sign up for my weekly newsletter, lots of good stuff there too!
Ricotta Cheese Flan with Rhubarb Compote
An authentic recipe for flan; a super easy, creamy custard made simply with eggs, sweetened condensed milk, and ricotta cheese dripping in caramel sauce. Serve with hunks of tender anise-scented stewed rhubarb for a beautiful spring dessert– the best! Naturally gluten-free!
Ingredients
For the flan:
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 4 large eggs
- 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
- 1 12-ounce can evaporated milk
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
compote:
- 4 cups chopped rhubarb (don't need to thaw if it's frozen)
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest, from 1 orange
- 1/2 teaspoon anise seed or 3 star anise pods
Instructions
For the Flan:
- Prepare the pan. Place a long bread pan or whichever pan you are using to make the flan (see post for options) inside a larger baking dish or roasting pan.
- Make the caramel. Spread sugar in an even layer in a medium frying pan. Add water and cook over medium-high heat, swirling only when necessary to cook the caramel evenly. Don't stir too much or the sugar will crystalize.
- Pour caramel into pan. When sugar turns a deep amber and starts to smoke, remove from heat and pour into the flan baking pan. Tilt the pan to coat the bottom evenly. Let cool.
- Heat oven. Heat oven to 325°F and bring a kettle or pot of water to a boil.
- Blend flan ingredients. Combine eggs, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk, ricotta cheese, vanilla extract, ricotta cheese and salt in the blender. Blend until smooth. Once caramel is cool enough to touch, pour flan custard into pan.
- Bake flan. Pour boiling water into the larger baking dish until it reaches halfway up the sides of the flan pan. Place in the oven and bake for 45-55 minutes or until the flan is mostly set but still a little wobbly in the middle.
- Chill flan. Remove from the oven and let flan rest in the water bath for 15 minutes. Remove and let cool completely on a wire rack. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours but best to let chill overnight.
- Turn out. Run a knife around the edge of the flan. Place a serving platter on top of the flan dish then turn over and give a gentle tap to release the flan. Slice and serve topped with rhubarb compote.
- For the rhubarb:
- Cook the compote. Combine rhubarb, sugar, orange juice, orange zest, and anise seed in a large frying pan. Place over medium-low heat and stir just until sugar dissolves. Continue cooking until rhubarb is tender, about 15 minutes.
- If you'd like the rhubarb to stay in distinct pieces try not to stir it too much as it cooks. The more you stir it, the more it will break up.
- Let cool then remove star anise pods if using. Serve at room temperature or cold over flan. Any leftover is delicious on Greek yogurt for breakfast.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 166Total Fat: 7gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 109mgSodium: 104mgCarbohydrates: 20gFiber: 2gSugar: 15gProtein: 8g
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thank you, would never have known how and it a fun and different dessert for me, much appreciated!
Thank you so much Sabrina! Please let me know when you try it.