One of my favorite types of parties to throw is a tapas party, because it allows me to experiment with new recipes without a lot of prior testing – because hey, if one thing doesn’t come out perfectly, there are twelve other foods in the queue. This weekend, in honor of my friend Sarah returning to town for the Teach For America Alumni Summit, I prepared a tapas feast for some of our friends. In the coming days I will showcase some of the recipes that I prepared for this dinner, and today I will start with one new recipe that did work – a smooth and creamy cheesecake flan. I picked this recipe because of its Spanish and New York roots – appropriate for my NYC tapas party.

Faced with the challenge of deciding the appropriate order for these tapas party posts, I’ve opted to go from nuts to soup, because the dessert took the longest to prepare and was the recipe I tackled when prepping the food for the evening. And thus, my afternoon in the kitchen began with some caramel syrup making. Resist the urge to stir – a low swirl of the pan does just fine!

After about ten minutes, the sugar and water mixture will begin to turn the color of champagne. Watch it carefully, and be ready to move the pan to a cooling bath of ice cubes and water as soon as it looks like caramel (this happens so fast, I was unable to capture it on film).

Almost immediately after removing the pan of caramel from the burner and transferring it to the cooling bath, pour enough caramel to cover the bottom waiting ramekins. These will end up baking in a water-filled pan with a towel at the bottom, which serves the dual purpose of preventing the cheesecakes from burning and preventing the ramekins from sliding around. I was very happy to be able to use Brian’s grandmother’s ramekins to prepare this recipe.

From here, the recipe gets much less technical. Lot’s of fun with a hand mixer!

Also, the opportunity to cook with both condensed and evaporated milks!

When all of the mixing is done and things are looking silky smooth, slowly pour the mixture on top on the caramel in the ramekins, stopping a quarter-inch from the edge. Then fill the pan with water so the ramekins are submerged halfway. After 30 minutes in my oven these were still not spongy to the touch, so I let them go an additional ten. I prepared these about six hours before i served them, letting them chill in the fridge. Using a knife to loosen them around the edges, they plopped perfectly onto serving plates, with the excess caramel acting as a beautiful garnish. They were deliciously creamy and received top marks. I will be sure to add them to my standard tapas repertoire. 

Ingrid Hoffman’s Cheesecake Flan

Recipe can be found on the Food Network Website

2 cups sugar 

1/4 cup water 

12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature (this blogger used 16 oz – I find more cream cheese yields better results)

3 large eggs, at room temperature 

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk 

1 (12-ounce) can evaporated milk 

1 1/2 cups milk, at room temperature 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Special equipment: 10 (3 1/2-inch) ramekins

Set a large bowl of ice water next to your stovetop. Place the sugar and 1/4 cup of water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Using a pastry brush, stir the sugar occasionally, being careful not to get any grains stuck against the sides of the saucepan, until it has all dissolved. Swirl the saucepan every minute until the sugar becomes a golden reddish-brown, about 10 to 15 minutes. Shock the bottom of the saucepan by placing the bottom in the ice water to stop the cooking, and then equally divide the caramel into 10 to 12 (3 1/2-inch) ramekins and set aside.

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F.

Using an electric mixer, beat the softened cream cheese with the eggs on low speed to combine. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until completely incorporated. Add the condensed milk, evaporated milk, whole milk and vanilla extract and continue to beat together until everything is well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Ladle the custard over the caramel into the ramekins filling them up to 1/2-inch from the rim. Place a kitchen towel in a deep baking dish or roasting pan and place the ramekins in 2 rows on top of the towel. Place the baking dish in the oven and using a pitcher, pour enough hot water into the baking dish to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins, taking care not to get water in the ramekins. Cover the baking dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake until the flan is just set, about 30 minutes. When you tap the edge of the ramekin the flan should still wobble in the center.

Carefully remove the baking dish from the oven, remove the foil and let the ramekins cool slightly. Using tongs remove the ramekins from the water and set on a towel to cool for at least 2 hours before serving. Once cooled completely, the flan can be refrigerated for up to 3 days before un-molding and serving. To serve, run a thin knife around the inside edge of the ramekin to loosen the flan, and then invert onto a plate.