Pantry Cooking: Flan aux Abricots

Sliceable apricot flan (in the French style) made with dried fruit and canned coconut milk

Luscious and so easy to make - dried apricot flan

For those of us in the Americas, when we hear ‘flan’ it generally conjures images of a slightly jiggly, inverted eggy custard with a caramel-stained top, dripping extra caramel sauce over the sides. It’s a delicious but messy dessert that is cooked slow and low, in a bain marie in the oven. So, it takes time, effort and attention - and is ultimately best enjoyed in the first day or two after baking.

In France, the land of technical desserts and pastry, flan is a less fussy, heartier dessert. It is thick and sliceable, such that you can carry a piece in your hand to snack on. Rich with egg yolks and vanilla, it’s a comfort food style dessert at its finest. It’s a dessert that can be enjoyed over days. The last slice will be just as lovely as the first.

During my years in France, flan was one of my favorite things to grab from the local boulangerie for an afternoon snack on my way home from classes. The flan would be perched in a flaky crust and was easy to nibble on, on the go. Often it was topped with fresh fruit such as apricot or plum halves, or even berries. Nowadays, I forego the crust - both to avoid gluten and to otherwise avoid the extra step of making crust when the flan itself is so lovely on its own.

At the beginning of ‘sheltering at home’ I stocked up on dried fruit, canned coconut milk and similar staples that have a long shelf life. The idea was to avoid having to go into a grocery store for as long as possible. This led to a need to use what I’d purchased and pushed me to experiment a bit. Thinking back to the apricot topped flans of my university years, I decided to make a primarily dairy-free flan studded with dried apricots, and the result was great! Perfectly sliceable, it’s easy to hold in-hand for snacking on the go although we weren’t going much of anywhere during lockdown. But still, there will be a day for this again soon!

FLAN AUX ABRICOTS

Ingredients:

2c Milks (1/3 heavy cream; 2/3 coconut)

125g sugar

3 eggs

3 yolks

40 g cornstarch

40 g gf AP flour

1 c dried apricots rehydrated (hot water, then soak overnight/all day)

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract

1 TBSP apricot preserves, loosened to a brushable texture with a touch of water

Method:

Combine sugar & starches. Add eggs to make paste.

Heat over medium low heat adding milk mixture slowly.

Stir constantly until begins to thicken. Add extracts. Let cool for 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375°

Generously butter baking dish (go smaller and deeper)

Scatter half of the apricots on the bottom of the baking dish.

Fill dish with the custard. Add remaining apricots. Bake 45 minutes.

If not browned, place under the broiler 3-4 min on high.

While the flan is still warm, use a pastry brush to lightly glaze the surface of the flan with the loosened apricot preserves.

Cool to room temp and refrigerate.