Perfect Vanilla Flan
Indulge in this delightful Vanilla Flan, where the rich essence of natural vanilla shines through every creamy bite. Nestled atop a flaky, golden puff pastry shell, this dessert is a perfect blend of smooth texture and robust flavor, crafted with a gentle cooking technique to ensure perfection. Treat yourself to this irresistible classic that’s sure to impress!
Prep
90
min
Cook
75
min
Serves
8
people
Level
advanced
📝 Ingredients
Serves 8🥛Dairy & Eggs(10)
- 40 g of melted butter (2.8 tbsp)
- 660 g of butter for laminating (46.2 tbsp)
- 250 g of liquid cream 35% (8.82 oz)
- 200 g of liquid cream 35% (7.06 oz)
- 80 g of cream powder (or cornstarch) (2.82 oz)cornstarch
- 150 g of whole eggs (5.29 oz)
- 60 g of egg yolks (2.12 oz)
- 30 g of egg yolks (1.06 oz)
- 750 g of whole milk (26.5 oz)
- 260 g of whole milk (9.18 oz)
🫙Pantry Staples(5)
- 460 g of flour T55 (3.68 cup)
- 330 g of flour T55 (2.64 cup)
- 250 g of granulated sugar (1.25 cup)
- 16 g of sugar (0.08 cup)
- 1 vanilla bean
🧂Spices & Seasonings(1)
- 16 g of salt (0.56 oz)
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
1345
Protein
16g
Carbs
93g
Fat
101g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Heat the milk, cream (1), and scraped vanilla.
- 2
Whisk the whole eggs, yolks, and sugar together. Add the cream powder.
- 3
Pour the hot liquid over the mixture, stir, then return to heat until thickened.
- 4
Off the heat, incorporate the cream (2), blend.
- 5
Mix sugar, salt, and milk for the dough.
- 6
Add yolks, flour, and melted butter. Knead for 3 minutes.
- 7
Wrap and let rest for 1 hour in the cold.
- 8
Roll out into a rectangle of 20x25 cm.
- 9
Mix the cold butter with the flour for laminating.
- 10
Roll out into a rectangle of 25x45 cm.
- 11
Enclose the dough in the laminated butter.
- 12
Give 3 double turns with 1 hour of rest in between each.
- 13
Roll out to 3 mm, cut a base and a strip.
- 14
Butter and sugar a 24 cm ring. Line with puff pastry.
- 15
Blind bake at 160°C for 30 minutes with rice or beads, covered.
- 16
Pour the hot flan mixture into the base.
- 17
Let rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.
- 18
Bake at 175°C for 45 minutes.
- 19
Cool completely before cutting (ideally 12 hours in the fridge).
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Heat your milk and cream mixture to 82-85°C (180-185°F) before tempering eggs because this temperature is hot enough to denature proteins and thicken the custard without scrambling eggs, which occurs above 71°C.timing82-85°C target temperature
- ✓Whisk eggs and sugar for 3-4 minutes until the mixture reaches 40°C and increases in volume by 30-40%, creating an emulsion that stabilizes the custard and prevents curdling when hot milk is added.technique3-4 minutes, 30-40% volume increase
- ✓Use the cream powder (starch) at 10.7% of the egg weight (80g per 750g liquid base) because this ratio provides 1.5-2% starch concentration, which gelatinizes at 65°C and thickens the flan to a custard consistency without over-setting.ingredient80g starch per 750g liquid (10.7% ratio), gelatinization at 65°C
- ✓Add the second cream (200g) off-heat and blend immediately because room-temperature cream stops carryover cooking and its fat content (35%) creates a silky texture by coating starch granules and reducing grittiness.technique35% fat content, off-heat incorporation
- ✓Knead your dough for exactly 3 minutes to develop 40-50% gluten extension without overdeveloping, since this flan dough should be tender; longer kneading creates toughness and reduces the delicate crumb structure.timing3 minutes, 40-50% gluten development
Share this recipe
Prep
90
min
Cook
75
min
Serves
8
people
Level
advanced
Share this recipe
Perfect Vanilla Flan
Indulge in this delightful Vanilla Flan, where the rich essence of natural vanilla shines through every creamy bite. Nestled atop a flaky, golden puff pastry shell, this dessert is a perfect blend of smooth texture and robust flavor, crafted with a gentle cooking technique to ensure perfection. Treat yourself to this irresistible classic that’s sure to impress!
📝 Ingredients
Serves 8🥛Dairy & Eggs(10)
- 40 g of melted butter (2.8 tbsp)
- 660 g of butter for laminating (46.2 tbsp)
- 250 g of liquid cream 35% (8.82 oz)
- 200 g of liquid cream 35% (7.06 oz)
- 80 g of cream powder (or cornstarch) (2.82 oz)cornstarch
- 150 g of whole eggs (5.29 oz)
- 60 g of egg yolks (2.12 oz)
- 30 g of egg yolks (1.06 oz)
- 750 g of whole milk (26.5 oz)
- 260 g of whole milk (9.18 oz)
🫙Pantry Staples(5)
- 460 g of flour T55 (3.68 cup)
- 330 g of flour T55 (2.64 cup)
- 250 g of granulated sugar (1.25 cup)
- 16 g of sugar (0.08 cup)
- 1 vanilla bean
🧂Spices & Seasonings(1)
- 16 g of salt (0.56 oz)
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories
1345
Protein
16g
Carbs
93g
Fat
101g
👨🍳 Instructions
- 1
Heat the milk, cream (1), and scraped vanilla.
- 2
Whisk the whole eggs, yolks, and sugar together. Add the cream powder.
- 3
Pour the hot liquid over the mixture, stir, then return to heat until thickened.
- 4
Off the heat, incorporate the cream (2), blend.
- 5
Mix sugar, salt, and milk for the dough.
- 6
Add yolks, flour, and melted butter. Knead for 3 minutes.
- 7
Wrap and let rest for 1 hour in the cold.
- 8
Roll out into a rectangle of 20x25 cm.
- 9
Mix the cold butter with the flour for laminating.
- 10
Roll out into a rectangle of 25x45 cm.
- 11
Enclose the dough in the laminated butter.
- 12
Give 3 double turns with 1 hour of rest in between each.
- 13
Roll out to 3 mm, cut a base and a strip.
- 14
Butter and sugar a 24 cm ring. Line with puff pastry.
- 15
Blind bake at 160°C for 30 minutes with rice or beads, covered.
- 16
Pour the hot flan mixture into the base.
- 17
Let rest for 30 minutes at room temperature.
- 18
Bake at 175°C for 45 minutes.
- 19
Cool completely before cutting (ideally 12 hours in the fridge).
💡 Pro Tips
- ✓Heat your milk and cream mixture to 82-85°C (180-185°F) before tempering eggs because this temperature is hot enough to denature proteins and thicken the custard without scrambling eggs, which occurs above 71°C.timing82-85°C target temperature
- ✓Whisk eggs and sugar for 3-4 minutes until the mixture reaches 40°C and increases in volume by 30-40%, creating an emulsion that stabilizes the custard and prevents curdling when hot milk is added.technique3-4 minutes, 30-40% volume increase
- ✓Use the cream powder (starch) at 10.7% of the egg weight (80g per 750g liquid base) because this ratio provides 1.5-2% starch concentration, which gelatinizes at 65°C and thickens the flan to a custard consistency without over-setting.ingredient80g starch per 750g liquid (10.7% ratio), gelatinization at 65°C
- ✓Add the second cream (200g) off-heat and blend immediately because room-temperature cream stops carryover cooking and its fat content (35%) creates a silky texture by coating starch granules and reducing grittiness.technique35% fat content, off-heat incorporation
- ✓Knead your dough for exactly 3 minutes to develop 40-50% gluten extension without overdeveloping, since this flan dough should be tender; longer kneading creates toughness and reduces the delicate crumb structure.timing3 minutes, 40-50% gluten development