Toasted Coconut Flan with a Vanilla Rum Whipped Cream

5 from 2 votes

Serves 8-10

Prep Time10

Cook Time1 20

Total Time1 30

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: Coconut Custard, Coconut Flan, Custard, Flan, Mexican Flan

Servings: people

Calories: 485kcal

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees and spray an 8-inch round cake pan with non-stick cooking spray.
In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the water and sugar using a rubber spatula. Increase the heat to medium-high for about 7-8 minutes until this mixture is amber in color, occasionally swirling the pan to distribute the caramel color. As soon as it starts to turn amber pour your caramel into an 8-inch round cake pan. Swirl the mixture around to make sure the bottom is evenly coated.

Pour the unsweetened shredded coconut in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Use a rubber spatula to stir the shredded coconut frequently for 2-4 minutes so it toasts evenly and doesn’t burn. Once all the coconut has been toasted, pour in the evaporated milk and the regular milk then increase the heat to medium to scald the milk. Once you see tiny bubbles starting to form around the perimeter (it should take 2-3 minutes), remove the saucepan from the heat and let the coconut steep in the milk mixture for 20 minutes.
After the coconut has steeped for 20 minutes, strain the milk into a blender. Add the condensed milk, coconut extract, vanilla extract and salt then blend together for a few seconds. Pour in the eggs then blend until your custard mixture is smooth. Strain the custard mixture into your prepared pan then cover with a piece of foil sprayed with nonstick spray. Place your cake pan in a bigger shallow baking dish and fill the dish with water halfway up the side of the cake pan. Bake for about an hour to an hour and ten minutes, until the outer rim of your custard stays firm, but the center jiggles a little.
Remove the cake pan from the water bath and let cool on a wire rack for about 30 minutes. Refrigerate for at least 3-4 hours before serving.

Make your whipped topping once your flan is ready to be served. Start by whipping the heavy cream, rum, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment on medium speed until you get fairly stiff peaks, it should take 3-4 minutes.
Once you are ready to serve, run a thin and sharp knife along the edge of your flan to make sure it hasn’t stuck to the pan. Place a plate on top of your flan and invert. Serve with a dollop of fresh whipped cream.