Vanilla Flan Parisien

Flan Parisien, or vanilla flan, is a classic French dessert with a strong vanilla flavor. I never really know what to answer people who ask, “What even is a flan?”

All I’ll say is that it’s delicious — and be careful with it, because it’s addictive!

For an 18 cm flan (about 1.1 kg)

For the crust:

• 225 g Flour

• 5 g Sugar

• 2 g Salt

• 200 g Butter

Mix the dry ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer, then add the cold butter cut into cubes. Mix on low speed with the paddle attachment until you get a sandy texture.

• 55 g Milk

• 1 Egg yolk

Add them in and mix just until the dough comes together. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for a few hours.

Roll out the cold dough to obtain a strip that’s 4.5 cm high and about 2 mm thick, and line the inside of an 18 cm pastry ring with it. Use the remaining dough to form a disc of the same thickness and place it at the bottom (just like for a tart).

Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes.

For the filling:

• 500 g Milk

• 160 g Heavy cream

Heat these together in a saucepan.

• 125 g Egg yolks

• 44 g Cornstarch

• 22 g Vanilla (more or less, depending on what type of vanilla you use)

• 80 g Sugar

Mix these ingredients, then temper them by pouring the hot liquids over them. Pour everything back into the saucepan and cook, stirring constantly.

• 70 g Butter

After it boils for about 1 minute, remove from the heat and add the butter, whisking until fully incorporated.

Pour the hot filling into the frozen crust and place back in the freezer for 30 minutes. Bake for 30 minutes at 200°C with fan, then let it cool for a few hours without removing the ring.

For a shinier finish, I brushed the top with apricot jam cooked with a little water and blended with an immersion blender.