Southern-Style
A Downhome Perspective on All Things Southern

8 Large Eggs
1 3/4 Cups Sugar
2 Teaspoons Vanilla
2 12 Oz Cans Evaporated Milk
Large Rectangular Pan With an Inch of Water in It
2 Quarts Corning ware Baking Dish With Lid
9 by 13 Inch Lidded Pan <or Something Like That

Heat 1 cup of the sugar directly on an eye of the stove near medium heat. While that is happening, preheat the oven to 325. The sugar needs to caramelize and get runny, a trick that requires a bit of practice. To kill time while the eye heats up, break the eggs into a large mixing bowl and add 3/4 cup of sugar. If the sugar hasn't caught fire yet, start beating the eggs and sugar mixture. When the sugar melts and turns brown, coat the inside of the Corning ware dish all the way up the sides with the caramel. This also takes a bit of skill, not to mention heat tolerant fingers. I use a spoon to slurp the caramel around the dish. When the coating process is over, put the dish to one side and blend the evaporated milk and vanilla into the egg-sugar mixture. Put the dish in the pan with the water in it, pour in the custard mixture and cover. In my oven, an hour and a half is plenty of baking time. I have no idea about yours. Try an hour and fifteen minutes, then test the custard by sliding the blade of a silver knife into it. If it comes out clean, you're done (and so is the flan).

Let the completed flan cool about an hour in the dish at room temperature with the lid off. Replace the lid and put it in the refrigerator to chill for a couple of hours. Next comes the real challenge. Take out the flan, remove the lid and gently run the knife blade around the outer edge of the custard so that it separates a bit from the dish. Put the 9 by 13 pan on top of the Corning ware dish and deftly invert it. This (I sincerely hope) will result in the flan resting upside down in the baking pan. Now all you have to do is spoon as much of the liquified caramel on top of the flan before you return it to the refrigerator in anticipation of serving it. Enjoy. Source: "Judge Michael Crespi"