Leche Flan

I cook for the pictures.

So, there. My first contribution to Hyperbole, a leche flan recipe.


Crème caramel or caramel custard to you, “leche flan” (from the Spanish flan de leche) is one of the quintessential holiday dessert fares in the Philippines. (Sidenote: “leche”, incidentally, when spat out with an exclamation point, is a profanity in the Philippines. “Leche ka!”, literally “you’re a milk!” really means “You’re so annoying”, whatever ’annoying means’.)

Because, a Filipino feast is just not festive enough without our favourite desserts, a Filipino colleague in Dire Dawa University tinkered with the available ingredients here to create her very own “leche flan”. And despite the substitutes (the original recipe calls for two kinds of milk: “condensada” and “evaporada”), her “leche flan ala Dire Dawa” tastes just like… “Pwede na”. (Good enough.)

I made this only once myself (see photo). “Pwede na”. Good enough for Christmas dinner this year.

Leche Flan

Makes about 8-12

Ingredients:

10 egg yolks (preferably, habesha)

2 small cans of filled milk (Alhamra Milk Lait)

3/4 cup granulated sugar (adjust to your own liking)

Equipment:

molds (we call the traditional oblong-shaped tin molds “llanera”; as a substitute, I recycle my Omaar tuna cans; great for steamed rice cakes, too!)

steamer 

Instructions:

• In each mold, place 1 tablespoon sugar. Set over low heat until sugar is melted and golden. To prevent sugar from burning, move molds (use tongs, of course and if you don’t have, scissors make okay tongs) repeatedly over flames. Remove from heat and allow caramel to cool.
• In a medium bowl, combine egg yolks, milk and sugar. Gently stir until blended. With a cheesecloth, strain egg-milk mixture. Pour strained mixture into prepared molds (half-full only).
• Cover the molds with foil. Steam for 30 to 35 minutes (or until toothpick inserted in the middle of custard comes out clean). 
• After steaming, allow to cool and refrigerate to set. To serve, turn flan over on a serving plate, letting the caramel ooze from the top.

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