Chocolate Flan Cake

Chocolate Flan Cake

This, my friends, is the dessert you've been searching for! A fabulous and tasty addition to any gathering or party, you'll love this cake because it's fun and easy to make. This dessert consists of deeply flavored chocolate cake topped with smooth, creamy flan and caramel sauce.

What is flan you ask? Modern flan is a type of egg custard flavored with caramel. It's an old European treat, originating from the middle ages and was served in pastry crust (which would be really yummy too). Here in the US most flan is treated as a pudding of sorts topped with caramel. 

I thought this cake was really fun and easy to make. It's fairly simple, and even does a magic reversal in the oven. The flan and cake layers switch places while baking! You can use any type of caramel topping, whatever you like best, as long as you can warm it in the microwave so it's easy to pour. An important thing to consider when making Chocolate Flan Cake is that it needs two hours to cool after baking and another eight hours to set in the fridge. So plan well the time you bake it! I also recommend a high quality chocolate to use in the cake. Ghirardelli and Callebaut are my favorites. I always use dutch processed cocoa in my baking as it's the number one choice in taste tests for cocoa. The chocolate cake is a great pairing for the flan, and should be it's equal in depth of flavor. 

Equipment needed: A large Bundt pan, roasting pan and blender.

Chocolate Flan Cake

by The Goldilocks Kitchen

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 90 minutes

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Ingredients (16 slices)

Cake

• 1/2 cup caramel sauce or topping
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup dutch processed cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

flan

• 2 cans sweetened condensed milk (14 oz)
• 2 cups whole milk
• 5 oz cream cheese
• 5 large eggs plus 4 egg yolks
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

1. Set an oven rack at middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a large nonstick Bundt pan well. Heat the caramel topping in the microwave for about 20 to 30 seconds and pour into the bottom of the pan.

2. Whisk the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a mixing bowl. In another large mixing bowl, microwave the chocolate and butter. Mix every twenty to thirty seconds until fully melted and smooth. Whisk in the sugar, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla into the melted chocolate. Then stir in the flour mixture until fully incorporated. Pour over caramel in the bundt pan.

3. In a large blender, process all the ingredients for the flan until smooth, about a minute. (If a blender is not available, you can beat the mixture on high for about 3 to 4 minutes until smooth.) Place the Bundt pan in a deep roasting pan and gently pour flan over the cake mixture. Fill the roasting pan with water until it reaches about half-way up the Bundt pan. Place in the oven and bake for 75 to 90 minutes, or when a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean.

4. Remove the Bundt pan and place it on a cooling rack for 2 hours. Then refrigerate for at least 8 hours to set the flan. When ready to serve, place the bottom half of the pan in a bowl of hot water for about a minute and run a knife gently around the edges (conforming to the shape of the pan) to make sure no cake is sticking to the edge. Place your serving platter over the cake, and holding it firmly, flip the cake over and slowly lift off the Bundt pan. Slice the flan and serve.

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