How to Make Leche Flan

Preparing the Caramel and Flan

Prepare your baking dish or ramekins. Leche flan can be made in a nine-inch (23 cm) baking dish or individual ramekins. Choose a ceramic baking dish or ramekins to make it easier to invert the flan onto a plate. Use cooking spray or a little butter to grease the inside of the dish or ramekins.

Melt the sugar to make caramel. Place a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Pour in the sugar and allow it to slowly caramelize. This will take about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir it frequently and do not leave unattended, since the sugar can get very hot and burn quickly. Remove the sugar from heat when it has liquefied and turned golden brown. If you continue to cook it past this stage, the caramel may burn. Do not let it stand too long before pouring, or it will begin to harden. This is called the dry way of making caramel, because you will not mix sugar with water.

Pour the caramel into the baking dish or ramekins. Pour carefully, since the hot caramel could burn your skin. Tilt the dish you are using to coat the bottom evenly with caramel. After pouring, let the caramel stand for 10 minutes or more before you add the flan mixture.

Beat the flan mixture. Stir together the condensed milk and the evaporated milk in a mixing bowl until they're thoroughly combined. Beat the eggs into the mixture, one at a time. The finished mixture should be light, fluffy and creamy. Be sure the eggs and milk are completely mixed. For added flavor, pour in a teaspoon of vanilla or lemon essence.

Pour the mixture into the baking dish or ramekins. Be sure that ten minutes have elapsed since you added the caramel. Then pour the flan mixture into dish so that it rises up the sides.

Baking the Flan

Preheat the oven to 350 °F (177 °C).

Make a bain marie. A bain marie is a water bath that helps the flan cook evenly and prevents it from cracking by creating a humid environment in the oven. To make one, pour hot water into a large, wide pan into which you can fit the baking dish or ramekins. Set the baking dish or ramekins into the water bath. Make sure the water isn't so deep that it rises up the sides of the baking dish or ramekins. You don't want water to get into your flan. A roasting pan makes a good bain marie pan.

Bake the leche flan. Lower the bain marie carefully into the oven and place it on the rack. Bake for one hour. The flan is ready when the custard (your milk and egg mixture) has set. Test it by jiggling the pan; if it seems set in the middle, it's ready. If it looks watery there, give it more time. Check on the flan every 15 minutes or so to make sure the water in the bain marie doesn't start to boil. This could cause the flan to overcook. If it begins to simmer or boil, add cold water to cool it down. After the flan is ready, allow it to cool on the counter for about 10 minutes.

Chilling and Serving the Flan

Refrigerate the flan. Place the cooled flan in the refrigerator so it will firm up. Keep it there until the flan is cold. This will make it much easier to unmold the flan.

Unmold the flan. Run a knife around edges of the flan. Wet the knife first with warm water so it won't drag against the custard. Place a large, rimmed serving platter on top of the flan pan. Holding both the platter and the flan pan, carefully invert the flan onto the platter.

Serve the flan. Cut it into wedges or spoon it onto dessert plates. Spoon extra caramel sauce from the baking dish over each serving. Serve with whipped cream and honey, if desired.