Dark Chocolate Flan

Flan is the quintessential Mexican dessert - and certainly my favourite. I love the creamy smoothness of the cold custard, and the bitter-sweetness of the caramel. This version has dark chocolate and a hint of cinnamon - a favourite Mexican flavour combination - making it even more decadent.

• Ready In: 1 hr 10 mins
• Serves: 8-10

Ingredients

• 1 (12 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 (12 ounce) can evaporated milk
• 6  eggs
• 1⁄2 cup sugar
• 1⁄2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1⁄2 teaspoon  almond extract
• 4  ounces  premium dark chocolate, shaved thin
• 1  cinnamon stick

• Caramel

• 1  cup sugar

Directions

1. Make caramel by slowly heating the sugar in a small saucepan until golden and liquid. Be careful not to stir too much, as this will cause crystals to form. Pour the very hot, molten sugar into the flan mold (this can either be a round pan or a bundt pan - I usually use a bundt pan because I like the pretty pattern the flan takes). Be sure to tilt the mold so that the caramel coats the sides.
2. In a small saucepan, heat the milk, cinnamon, and chocolate pieces, stirring occasionally to help the chocolate melt. Let this cool down to just warm and remove the cinnamon stick. Blend the rest of the ingredients together gradually adding the milk mixture.
3. Preheat oven to 350°F.
4. Pour into caramelized pan and bake in a hot water bath (bain marie) for about 50-55 minutes or until golden. Test with a knife or toothpick, it should come out clean. Remove from oven, cool, unmold and serve. (If you are having trouble unmolding the flan, run a small, sharp knife around sides of pan to help release.).