Adam Gopnik's Five C Flan Recipe and Baking Temperature

Question

Today I listened to Christopher's delightful interview of Adam Gopnik and I would love to have Adam's recipe for his life's success: the Five "C" Flan.
And in googling trying to find this recipe today, I learned that Adam gave one of my favorite Moth talks about "LOL." fabulous.
Thanks,
Ann

Lynn Clark · Accepted Answer

Hi Folks -
Adam just sent us his recipe. Please find it below. Enjoy!
Five C Quarantine Flan
(Coconut- Cinnamon- Cardamom Cr.me Caramel.)
1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut milk
3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup heavy cream
Four egg yolks and two whole eggs
1/2 cup sugar
One cup sugar
One teaspoon of cinnamon
1/4 cup cold water
Four to six cardamom pods
Approx. 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
Make caramel on stove: dissolve sugar in water and cook until browned and almost burnt.
Take off stove and add a teaspoon of cinnamon and stir into the super-hot caramel.. (You can
buy pre-made cardamom -cinnamon sugar from Milk Street on line to caramelize, but this will
work as well.)
Pour the caramel into the bottom of four souffle dishes. (There’s usually enough left over for
two mini-souffl. dishes as well. The minis are fun to have for dieting spouses.)
Using a whisk, beat the eggs and egg yolks with the sugar— you can use relatively little sugar
with the egg yolks, since the coconut milk is naturally sweet. But not for too long -- just until it
is a beautiful lemony yellow.
Heat the coconut milk, whole milk and heavy cream in a pot. Stir in the husked cardamom pods
and the coconut. Make the mixture hot and just steaming-smoking but not truly boiling.
Pour the hot milks into the egg mixture ,beating all the while with the whisk to keep the eggs
from cooking.
Pour the egg and milk mixture, with the coconut and cardamom still in it, into the souffle cups
with the cinnamon caramel hardened on the bottom. (If the mixture’s super-frothy, you can
strain it through a sieve, which will leave the cardamom and coconut behind…in that case, mix
them back in cup by cup. I never find this step—straining -- makes much difference, but some
like to do it.)
Put the soufflé's cups into a big baking dish with boiling water poured right up so that it comes to
about a third of the way up each cup.
Bake for approx. thirty minutes, or until set.
Refrigerate. Unmold by running a sharp knife around the edge of each creme caramel and
inverting onto a pretty plate. Scoop out the residual caramel, there’s always some, with the
knife or spoon unto the flan.
Serve with pleasure.

Adam Gopnik's Five C Flan Recipe and Baking Temperature

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