Advertisement

The Eatery's toasted coconut honey flan

Time1 hour 30 minutes
YieldsServes 10
The Eatery's toasted coconut honey flan
(Glenn Koenig / Los Angeles Times)
Share
Print RecipePrint Recipe

Dear SOS: I was at Claud & Co. Eatery in Pasadena. The food was all wonderful, but its coconut flan was to die for: toasted coconut in the lightest, tastiest flan. Can you get the recipe?

Maggie Edmondson

Via email

Dear Maggie: Coconut fans, rejoice! The Eatery was happy to share its recipe with us. Toasted coconut gives both rich flavor and a fun crunch to this crème brûlée, also flavored with notes of honey, cinnamon and vanilla.

Advertisement
1

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil.

2

Spread the coconut on a rimmed baking sheet and toast until the coconut is a light golden color, 10 to 12 minutes, stirring halfway for even coloring. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

3

Prepare the caramel: In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine one-half cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar and the corn syrup with enough water to moisten the sugar to a wet sand-like consistency. Place the pan over medium-high heat and cook until the sugar is melted to a syrup and turns a rich golden color, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat and immediately divide the syrup among 10 (8-ounce) ramekins, swirling the caramel to line the base of each. Set the ramekins aside

4

In a small heavy pot, combine the cream, vanilla, 1 cup of the toasted coconut and the cinnamon sticks. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat without scorching, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

5

While the cream is heating, whisk together the eggs, honey and remaining one-half cup sugar in a large mixing bowl until smooth.

6

Slowly ladle the heavy cream 1 ladle at a time into the mixing bowl with the eggs, whisking constantly, until all of the cream has been added and the mixture is fully combined. Strain through a fine sieve, discarding the cinnamon sticks and any solids. Divide the custard base among the caramel-lined ramekins to just below the rim. Divide the remaining toasted coconut among the ramekins.

7

Place the ramekins in a roasting pan (you may need to cook these in batches), leaving a couple of inches between each ramekin, and place the roasting pan in the oven. Carefully fill the roasting pan with enough hot water to come two-thirds up the sides of the ramekins.

8

Bake the ramekins until they jiggle just slightly when tapped, about 1 hour. Carefully remove the pans from the oven and cool the custards, then cover and refrigerate the custards at least 4 hours to set (the custards can be refrigerated up to 2 days).

9

To serve, run a small knife around the custards to loosen. To unmold, carefully invert a small plate over each custard, then flip the custard and plate over, shaking the custard to dislodge it from the ramekin (if the custards are stuck, carefully run the base of each ramekin over a low flame on the stove-top to warm the caramel). Serve immediately.