Recipe: John's Vanilla Flan

JOHN'S VANILLA FLAN

1/4 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 can (14 ounces) non-fat sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 cups skim milk
1 Tablespoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a small heavy saucepan bring water and sugar to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Boil syrup, without stirring, until it turns golden caramel. Pour caramel into a 1 1/2-qt. souffle dish, tilting dish to coat bottom and some of side with caramel.

In a large bowl whisk together eggs, condensed milk, skim milk and vanilla until smooth. Pour mixture through a fine sieve into souffle dish.

Put dish in a baking pan and carefully add enough hot water to pan to reach halfway up side of dish.

Bake flan in middle of oven 1 1/4 hours, or until it is just set but still trembles slightly. (Flan will set as it cools.) Remove flan from pan and cool in dish on a rack.

Chill flan, covered, until cold, at least 4 hours and up to 1 day.

To serve, dip dish in a baking pan of hot water 2 seconds. Run a thin knife around edge of dish and invert flan onto serving plate.

Makes 5 servings.