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Coconut Flan

10

  • Prep Time15 min
  • Total Time1 h 15 min
  • Makes8 servings
*PLUS cooling time
A coconut flan with shavings of coconut on top drizzled with caramel sauce on a white plate with a brown patterned border with a slice cut out of it and a vintage cake server lifting a slice up on a teal tablecoth

(Recipes by: Diala Canelo; produced by: Chantal Braganza and Sun Ngo; Photography by Carmen Cheung; food styling by Sage Dakota; prop styling by Christine Hanlon; hair and makeup by Wendy Rorong; clothing courtesy of horsesatelier.com)

When cookbook author Diala Canelo was growing up in Santo Domingo, every celebration, birthday and Sunday lunch would end with a delicious flan. This one is made with coconut milk, which creates a velvety- smooth custard and adds a rich tropical flavour.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup granulated sugar

  • 5 eggs

  • 1 400-mL can full-fat coconut milk

  • 400 mL sweetened condensed milk

  • 1 350-mL can evaporated milk

  • 1 tbsp vanilla

  • 1 tsp white rum

  • 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries

Instructions

  • Position rack in centre of oven and preheat to 325°F.

  • Pour sugar into a large frying pan set over medium. Using a rubber spatula, stir constantly until sugar is melted and turns into a golden-brown caramel. If sugar is browning too fast, reduce heat to medium-low.

  • Immediately pour caramel into a 9-in. flan pan or round baking dish, tilting the dish as you pour so that the caramel coats the bottom and side of the pan. (Work quickly, as the caramel will start to set.) Set aside.

  • In a large bowl, whisk eggs. Whisk in milks, vanilla and rum. (Or combine all the ingredients in a blender and whirl until combined, about 30 sec.) Pour custard mixture over cooled caramel in dish.

  • Prepare a water bath by placing the flan pan in a larger baking dish or roasting pan. Slide prepared baking dish into oven, then pour enough hot water into the dish to come halfway up the side (about 2 in.) of the flan pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the centre of the flan comes out clean, about 1 hr.

  • Remove water bath from oven and transfer flan pan to a wire rack. Let cool completely. Loosely cover dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight until well chilled.

  • When ready to serve, set flan pan on a rimmed baking sheet filled with 1/2 in. of hot water. Let stand for 5 min. (This will make it easier to unmould the flan.)

  • To serve, run a knife around the edge of the flan to loosen it. Place a large round rimmed platter rim over the flan; invert pan and platter, letting flan drop onto the platter and the caramel sauce to flow over and around the custard. Scatter strawberries overtop. (Toasted coconut shaving or sliced stone fruits also make great toppings.)

Make-ahead tip

Cover and refrigerate flan for up to 4 days.

This recipe is part of a homemade taco bar menu developed for Chatelaine by Diala Canelo. Get all the recipes for our complete taco feast.

Chatelaine celebrates, inspires, informs and empowers. We know that Canadian women contain multitudes, and we cover all of the issues—big and small—that matter to them, from climate change to caregiving, Canadian fashion and what to cook now.

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The cover of Chatelaine magazine's spring 2025 issue, reading "weekend prep made easy"; "five delicious weeknight meals", "plus, why you'll never regret buying an air fryer"; "save money, stay stylish how to build a capsule wardrobe" and "home organization special" along with photos of burritos, chicken and rice and white bean soup, quick paella in a dutch oven, almost-instant Thai chicken curry and chicken broccoli casserole in an enamelled cast-iron skillet

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