Simply Irresistible Mexican Hot Chocolate Flan

How do you spell romance?  I spell it F-L-A-N!

For my Simply Irresistible inspired Food n' Flix dish, I made a Mexican Hot Chocolate Flan that is rich, creamy and well, simply irresistible.

What I like most about Simply Irresistible is how Amanda's (Sarah Michelle Gellar) feelings are expressed through her cooking, whether it be love, sadness, or stunned silence.  And that's exactly what I wanted to recreate.  Something that would express my love and appreciation for my wonderful Hubby.  Things have been incredibly hectic in the shop lately, hence my absence from Blogland, and we both desperately needed a relaxing (and romantic) night to take our minds off work.

Worked like a charm!

Nothing says romance like 1 Flan and 2 spoons!

Simply Irresistible Mexican Hot Chocolate Flan

Ingredients:

• 1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
• 1 tablet Mexican chocolate (Abuelita or Ibarra brand)
• 1/2 cup Cajeta (or caramel sauce) 
• 1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
• 3 eggs

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F.

Chop the Mexican chocolate tablet into medium pieces.

In a small saucepan, heat the evaporated milk over medium heat until very warm.  (Do NOT boil!)  Pour the warm milk over the chocolate and let set a couple of minutes until the chocolate begins to melt.

Stir with a spoon or wire whisk to completely dissolve the chocolate.

Pour the cajeta in the bottom of a 9-inch cake pan, tilting to coat the bottom of pan; set aside.  (I like to bake my flan in a shallow cake pan, so there is less chance of it breaking when I flip it over to serve.) 

In a blender cup, combine the evaporated milk with chocolate, the sweetened condensed milk and the eggs.  Puree until smooth.  Carefully pour the chocolate mixture into the prepared cake pan.

Place the cake pan inside a larger cake pan and fill the larger cake pan with about 1-inch of hot water.    (This is called a water bath or Bain Marie aka Baño Maria.)

Bake for about 45 minutes or until the very center of the flan is only slightly jiggly.

Remove from oven and let cool to room temperature.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

To serve, place a serving plate, face-down on top of the flan.  Grabbing both the serving plate and the baking dish, gently flip the flan over; remove baking pan.

Enjoy!!!

*If you're participating in Food n' Flix with me this month, be sure to email me at leslielimon@lacocinadeleslie.com so I can include you in the round-up tomorrow.