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Creme Caramel Custard Flan Recipe (Italian). The most irresistibly smooth, silky, and sweet creme caramel custard flan recipe. This Italian Flan is a rich, sweet custard baked in a caramel sauce. It looks fancy, but it’s simple to make.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
This is a silky smooth custard recipe for creme caramel or flan! Flan, or crème caramel, is a custard baked in a dish coated with caramelized sugar that forms a sauce when the custard is unmolded. This is my nonna Laura’s recipe. It is perfect for special occasions or a lazy weekday afternoon.
- The eggy custard basically gets a steam bath in the oven to create a silky smooth egg custard that is made in a round bundt-like pan.
- This caramel custard is a custard dessert with a layer of caramel sauce that resembles a chewy caramel candy but in liquid form. I promise this dessert is a slice of heaven that you just want to keep eating!
Don’t delay in trying this spectacular and unique dessert. It is a great recipe to “wow” your guests or keep in the fridge for when that sweet tooth comes calling.
Table of Contents
Simple Ingredients
The ingredients for this easy recipe are ones you likely have on hand.
- Whole milk
- Granulated Sugar
- Large eggs
- Vanilla pod
- Salt
- Lemon peel or lemon zest
My Nonna always added a little lemon peel to flavor the flan. You can serve it with lemon peel or discard it before serving. Some recipes call for sweetened condensed milk, but I prefer the richness of whole milk.
Accompany crème caramel with whipped cream or fresh fruit, or enjoy how it melts in your mouth! This is a classic flan recipe you don’t want to miss.
Recommended Equipment
- 1 round bundt pan as the mold or cake pan (another option: about 8 (6 oz) individual ramekins).
- 1 roasting pan or oven-safe baking dish that is deep enough to fit the baking pan or ramekins with enough room for 2 inches of water at the bottom. This is needed for the water bath- as we say in Italian, ‘bagna Maria,’ or as they say in French, ‘bain Marie.’
- Sieve or strainer to strain the hot milk.
How To Make Creme Caramel
This silky, elegant custard is a show-stopping dessert or a simple afternoon snack to satisfy a sweet craving. It is also a great make-ahead recipe that can be stored in the fridge until it is ready to serve.
Add the milk to a medium saucepan.
Place the lemon peel in the milk to flavor the milk. Heat until warm.
Add the eggs and sugar to a mixing bowl.
Whisk eggs and sugar to combine.
Slowly add the egg mixture to the hot milk.
Add the vanilla bean to the creme caramel mixture.
Place the butter in a saucepan and cook.
Cook sugar until a caramel forms. Stir constantly. You will pour this into the prepared ramekins.
Pour the creme custard mixture into a mesh strainer.
Pour the custard into the ramekins with the caramel on the bottom.
Make a water bath for the custard to steam as it bakes.
Bake the Italian flan in the oven until slightly golden on the top. When cooled slightly, invert the ramekins onto small plates and serve. The caramel will spill over the sides for a beautiful presentation.
Crème caramel is made without gelatin or starches. The eggs are the thickening agent, creating a perfectly smooth, velvety texture. The trick is cooking the water bath at a reasonably gentle temperature.
Expert Tips
Tips and tricks to get the smooth and creamy custard texture for creme caramel flan:
- Use warm milk (don’t skip this step!).
- Use room-temperature eggs.
- Incorporate the warm milk into the egg mixture a little bit at a time and stir constantly to prevent the eggs from scrambling.
- Pour the final mixture through a Sieve or strainer to avoid lumps and achieve a smooth custard.
- Bake low and slow at gentle heat with a water bath (not boiling water!) to ensure it is perfect and even baked.
- Follow these tips to achieve a lovely, golden brown custard dessert.
Storage Instructions
To store your leftover Creme Caramel, let it cool completely at room temperature and cover it with plastic wrap. Do not press the plastic down or cover and squish the sides.
You can keep this in the fridge for 3 to 5 days, but it is always best enjoyed fresh!
The difference between Creme Caramel, Flan, and Creme Brûlée
Creme caramel is eggier and silky, unlike creme brûlée which is more like a custard sauce with a sugar candy crust. They contain similar ingredients, yet the presentation and taste are slightly different.
Creme brûlée is known for its hard sugar shell, which you break with a spoon to reach the creamy interior.
Creme caramel has the same texture from the inside out, with the caramel infused as a liquid sauce in the outer layer. I prefer creme caramel for the stronger caramel-infused taste in the custard.
Another distinction- is that crème caramel (“caramel cream”) and flan are French names, but flan has come to have different meanings in different regions. Some recipes only call for egg yolks, while this recipe uses the whole egg.
In Spanish-speaking countries, like Latin America, and often in the United States, crème caramel is known as flan. You may also hear it called ‘Leche flan’, or milk flan.
In Italy, we call it both creme caramel AND flan- so take your pick!
More Desserts for YOU:
- Italian Pear Cake
- Lemon Yogurt Loaf (blueberries optional)
- French Apple Tart
- Italian Olive Oil, Orange, and Honey Cake
- Panna Cotta
More cream desserts you will love: Italian Cream Crumb Cake (sbriciolata alla crema), Puff Pastry filled with Italian Chocolate Cream, Cream Horn Recipe, and BEST Authentic Sicilian Cannoli Recipe.
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Creme Caramel Flan Recipe
Equipment
- 1 round bundt pan as the mold another option: about 8 (6 oz individual ramekins)
- 1 roasting pan or oven-safe dish that is deep enough to fit the baking pan or ramekins with enough room for 2 inches of water at the bottom
Ingredients
- 4 ¼ cups whole milk, 1 liter
- 1 cup granulated sugar, 200 grams, (divided)
- 6 large whole eggs, room temperature
- 1 vanilla bean, cut lengthwise with the seeds scraped out OR 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 pieces lemon peel, cut lemon skin just the yellow part, or 1 teaspoon lemon zest.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F
- For the caramel, in a stainless small saucepan and add 1/2 cup of sugar. Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. When the sugar is completely dissolved, bring it to a boil without stirring until the color turns dark caramel brown. Quickly pour the caramel into the bottom of the bundt pan (or 6 ramekins) to coat all the sides. Set aside.
- Add the milk and lemon peel to a separate medium saucepan. Heat on medium-low heat until just hot, (not boiling!!). Then remove it from the heat.
- Beat the eggs with the remaining 1/2 cup sugar until well combined. Slowly whisk the egg mixture in the warm milk, a ladleful at a time until completely incorporated into the eggs. Whisk in the salt and vanilla extract. Stir to combine.
- Pour the entire custard mixture through a sieve (mesh strainer) into a large bowl. You can put lemon peel back into the creme mixture and bake with it or discard it at this point. Pour the mixture into the bottom of the pan or individual ramekins lined with caramel. Place bundt pan or ramekins in an oven-safe dish or roasting pan.
- Very carefully pour 2-3 cups boiling hot water into the bottom of the roasting pan (it should reach halfway up the side of the baking dish), avoiding splashing or pouring into the creme mixture. Place in the bottom rack of the oven and bake for 1 hour for the bundt pan and 30-35 minutes for the ramekins until the center jiggles just a little bit. Remove the roasting pan from the oven.
- Allow to cool slightly and then wrap with the bundt pan or ramekins with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 3 hours or up to 24 hours.
- When ready to serve gently run a butter knife near the edges just enough to loosen the flan and tip upside down onto a flat plate. Watch the caramel sauce pour out onto the plate. Yum. Enjoy!
Notes
- Use warm milk (don’t skip this step!).
- Use room temperature eggs.
- Incorporate the warm milk into the egg mixture a little bit at a time and stir constantly to avoid scrambling the eggs.
- Make sure to pour the final mixture through a Sieve or strainer to avoid any lumps and get a smooth custard.
- Bake low and slow at a gentle heat with a water bath (not boiling water!) to ensure the perfect and even bake.
- Follow these tips to achieve a perfectly sweet, golden brown custard dessert.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Dear Elena looks delicious on my list to make 😋 thank you. Grazie Mille 😁
Let me know how you love it!
Elena, I have distinct memories of eating Crème Caramel in Italy, 40 years ago! Nothing I’ve had in North America has ever tasted as good. So I came looking for the Italian recipes and believe your Nona’s is it, because of the browned sugar sauce! Wish me luck!
I can’t wait to hear all about it! I loved learning about your memories.
Ohhhhh I can’t wait to try this .. it sounds wonderful!!
Enjoy!!
The best Italian flan recipe you will ever try! It is nonna’s famous recipe for a reason. Enjoy
Your recipe is very similar to the one I have. My in-laws parents are from Italy and the recipe is from them. Theirs is with 1 can cold evaporated milk, 1 can cold milk, 1/2 cup sugar, 6 eggs, 1 tbsp vanilla. The big difference is I add a shot of amaretto to the egg mixture. I also use 1 1/2 cups of burnt sugar . Have been told it is the creamiest dessert they have ever had. Our family calls it Boo-ding.
I love your variation. Yes, this is a treasured family recipe I grew up eating in Italy.
This recipe was so easy and delicious!
Happy you loved it! It is a delicious flan recipe.
Happy you loved it as much as we do!