The first time I heard about a choco-flan, the delectable combination of a chocolate cake and flan, was at __Richard Sandoval’s restauran__t Maya in New York City. I’ve been in love ever since.
This dessert is a lot simpler to make that it sounds. The first time I did it I bought pre-made caramel and a box of chocolate cake mix. Since then, though, I’ve learned to make it even better from scratch. It may look complicated but it’s so easy that anyone can do it. I’m also very calorie-conscious so I tried to use mostly low-cal ingredients. Trust me, you won’t know the difference when you taste this decadent and sinfully easy treat. Get ready to seriously impress your honey big time this Valentine’s Day!
Read more ¿Qué más? How to Latinize a Valentine's Day Fave: Chocolate Covered Strawberries.
__Irina's Choco-Flan (chocolate cake and flan combination)
__
Ingredients:
CARAMEL:
3 cups Splenda brown sugar mix
1/4 cup softened butter
CHOCOLATE CAKE:
1 cup Splenda for cooking
5 tbsp softened butter
1 egg, room temperature
1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 1/4 cup buttermilk
FLAN:
1 12oz can of evaporated milk
1 14oz can of condensed sweetened milk, fat free
4oz cream cheese, fat free
3 eggs
1tbsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
Directions:
To prepare the caramel: In a medium deep pan, melt your 1/4 cup softened butter and add in the Splenda brown sugar. Melt it over high heat, constantly stirring. This is your caramel and it’s extremely important to never stop stirring! Trust me, I learned this one the hard way (no pun intended).
To prepare the chocolate cake: In a large bowl, put in your 5tbsp of butter, cooking Splenda, 1 egg, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder and buttermilk. Using a hand mixer (or a large mixer, if you have it), mix the chocolate cake and set aside.
To prepare the flan: In a blender, combine the evaporated milk, sweet condensed milk, cream cheese, 3 eggs and vanilla extract. Blend the mixture.
To make it into a choco-flan: Pour your caramel on the bottom of a bundt cake pan or a large lasagna pan. This is best done right after the caramel is melted. Pour the chocolate cake mixture on top of the caramel. Then, pour on your cheesecake mixture. Make sure to pour it all over because it won’t spread evenly on its own. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the pan directly in the middle of the rack and bake for about 1 hour. Take your chocoflan out of the oven and you have a few options: serve it hot immediately, let it cool for an hour or do it the traditional way and let it sit for 24 hours. It’s up to you, but don’t forget to sprinkle the walnuts (or any other nut) on top when serving!
Are you going to make your honey a dessert for Valentine’s Day?
Image via chilebeans/flickr