Creme Caramel Flan With A Spun Sugar Cage

Few things in life are better than an individual-sized wiggly, jiggly dessert, and that's exactly what you'll get with this mini flan! With custard on the bottom and caramel on the top, we're going to go ahead and dub it the devilishly delicious mullet of the culinary world.

Yield: 4
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 45 minutes

You'll Need:

For the caramelized sugar:

• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tbsp water

For the custard:

• 2 cups milk
• ½ vanilla bean
• ⅔ cup sugar
• 4 eggs

Here's How:

1. Bring the sugar and water to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat. Once the caramelized sugar has browned, remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool until the bubbles have disappeared. Place 4 ramekins in a casserole dish and divide the caramelized sugar between the ramekins, making sure to save some back for the spun sugar cages.

2. For the custard, whisk the milk and vanilla in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil. Pour the vanilla milk into a large bowl and whisk in the sugar and eggs. Divide the mixture between the 4 ramekins and pour over the cooled caramel bases.

3. Fill the casserole dish halfway with hot water, transfer the dish to a preheated oven, and cook at 350°F for 25 minutes.

4. Once the flan has cooled a bit, carefully transfer the ramekins to the refrigerator and chill for 1½ hours.

5. For the spun sugar cages, grease the outsides of 4 ramekins and place them upside-down on parchment paper. Use a wooden spoon to drizzle the remaining caramelized sugar back and forth in a zigzag pattern over each ramekin. Let the spun sugar cages harden and carefully cut away the excess threads around each ramekin.

6. Carefully flip the creme caramel flans over onto small plates and place the spun sugar cages on top.

Get the recipe for the Caramel Apple Galette featured in the bonus video.