Caramel Custard

Caramel Custard , or flan, or caramel pudding, or creme caramel, oh, call it what you will, it doesn't matter. Truth is, it's  a classic!!! and my all time favourite dessert and as luck would have it the foodie on duty (aka hubby darling) lovessssss it too. There can never be enough of it and to think that this heavenly dessert needs just 4 ingredients!!!! Unbelievable.

                                                            Remember this?

My first introduction to caramel custard was when I was a little kid. We often made it using the Weikfield pack. I still remember what that packet looked like. The instructions were easy to follow and it didn't take too long for that dessert to set and thinking of it, if given a chance I could've eaten the entire bowl on my own,,, sigh, if not for those two siblings.......



Anyway, these days, as I continue my baking expeditions, I've for long, wanted to learn to make this on my own. Added encouragement and motivation, that it's my husband's favourite dessert as well.Also, this is from my food bucket list that I posted earlier.  I tried making it a couple of times, without having understood the basics of it and yes while it still tasted good, I never got the texture right, and I could never get it to set right. It sorta became my arch nemesis. How terribly sad, considering I had always loved it. When I finally did my research, I realized I was making the silliest errors and in fact this beloved dessert was the easiest and most forgiving. All it needed and most was a bit of time.



Creme caramel needs just 4 ingredients, 4 everyday, very easily available ingredients, you'll find in your kitchen any time and that would be 1. Sugar. 2. Milk, 3. Eggs 4. Vanilla essence and that's it. A little bit of oven time, water bath and some chilling time in the fridge and your dessert will be perfect, to the point where it'll slide out of your mould straight on to your dish with all that caramel to drool on..

Here are a few things you should remember while making your creme caramel

1. DON'T grease your moulds, with butter or oil.
2. Use a "bain marie" method to cook the custard. No two ways about this
3. Give it sufficient time in the fridge to set. I now prefer making them the previous night and letting them set, but even just 4 hours is time enough

So how do you make it.

This is the most basic, yet efficient and fail proof recipe you'll  ever need.

We first start with the caramel. Sort of  like how we made for our Christmas cake, but we don't need to add a cup of hot water once the sugar turns browns. So in a pan, goes the sugar and a sprinkle of water to help it melt and we let it melt till it turns a deep golden colour. Put the caramel in your baking dish and swirl it all around making sure the base is all covered . You can use this recipe to make custard in 6 individual ramekins or a 6 inch round cake pan and it'll turn out just as good. I've tried both. Also, once you take the caramel off the stove, it sets quite fast, so keep your ramekins ready as you make the caramel and be quick in spooning and swirling that caramel into the dish.


Just set it aside and mix the custard. For this all you need to do is whip the sugar and eggs and then pour in the essence and milk and whisk it. Your custard mix is ready. While castor sugar is best, I've had those times, I've  gone ahead with granulated, regular sugar. Like I said, this custard is very forgiving.  I prefer to use milk at room temperature and not straight from the fridge. Once the mix is ready, pour it over the caramel and place the ramekins/cake pan in a large baking dish, Pour hot water in the dish that covers at least half the ramekin or the cake tin if you're using one. Bake till the custard cooks. Let it cool and then leave to set in the refrigerator

Un moulding the custards is really simple. Just run a knife around the edges of the ramekin and place a saucer over it and turn it upside down. You can gently tap the bottom of the ramekin, but even without it the custard should slide out on to your serving platter easily covered in caramel. And voila,,,,, creme caramel is ready!!!!!!!!! Attack!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I think this makes a lovely dessert if you planning one of those night in valentine day dates, because like love, this never goes out of fashion.

Creme Caramel :

Makes 6 medium sized ramekins or one 6 inch round tin.

Ingredients :

For the caramel :

5 tbsps of granulated sugar
1 tbsp water

For the Custard:

4 tbsp castor sugar
3 eggs
1tbsp vanilla essence
1/2 ltr milk

1. Start with pre heating your oven to 180 C

2. Make the caramel. In a small nonstick pan, put the sugar and sprinkle the water. Keep on low flame and let the sugar melt.

3. Swirl the pan around and let the sugar turn a golden brown. Pour equally between the ramekins or in the cake tin, swirling around to cover the entire base of the dish.

4. For the custard, whisk the eggs and sugar till fluffy, add the milk and vanilla and to bring together.  Pour into the cake tin or ramekins, over the caramel.

5. Place the ramekins/tin in a large baking dish. Fill up the dish halfway with hot water. Bake for 40 mins

6. Take the ramekins/tin out of the hot water and let them cool a bit.

7. Let them set in the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours

8. To serve, run a flat knife around the sides of the ramekin/tin . Place a saucer/platter over the dish and turn upside down. Gently tap the bottom of the dish for the custard to slide out,