Flan de Naranja – Orange Custard
Flan de Naranja is a light and silky custard dessert topped with soft caramel. Instead of milk or cream, this recipe uses freshly squeezed orange juice brightened with its own zest.
This light, dare I say healthy, flan recipe is also as easy as custard desserts get. There is no need to precook the custard, which means there’s zero chance of screwing up and ending with orange-flavored scrambled eggs.
The trickiest part is making the caramel. I’m hoping that rendering a few pounds of sugar inedible for the sake of testing means that I’m somewhat qualified to give a few tips on caramelizing.
recipe adapted from Penelope Casas’ The Foods and Wines of Spain
Flan de Naranja
Orange Custard
makes 4 servings
Equipment:
4 six-ounce ramekins
a bain-marie / water bath (a 9 x 13-inch baking dish filled with hot water)
For the Caramel:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 teaspoons water
2 teaspoons corn syrup (optional)
For the Orange Custard:
6 large eggs
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/3 cups freshly squeezed orange juice (about 4 to 5 oranges)
1 teaspoon orange zest
Notes:
- Why add corn syrup to the caramel? Adding corn syrup prevents the caramel from crystallizing.
- To caramelize the syrup evenly, a bit of agitation is needed. Swirling the pan gently instead of stirring keeps the syrup from turning into a sandy mess.
Caramel Directions:
- In a small skillet, mix together the sugar, water, and corn syrup (if using). Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Start swirling the syrup gently (don’t stir) and continue cooking until the caramel is amber-colored.
- Immediately pour the caramel into the 4 ramekins to coat the bottom evenly. Let the caramel set and cool completely before making the custard.
Orange Custard Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF / 165ºC.
- Make the orange custard. Lightly beat the eggs with a fork until light-colored, taking care to minimize the amount of air incorporated into the eggs. Add the sugar and continue beating while pouring in the orange juice. Strain. Add the orange zest and stir.
- Prepare the bain-marie/water bath. Place cloth or paper towels in an empty 9×13-inch baking dish (this helps insulate the bottom of the ramekins from excessive heat). Set the ramekins on the towels and distribute the custard evenly. Place in the preheated oven and carefully pour enough hot water in the baking dish to at least the same level as the custard.
- Bake at 325ºF / 165ºC for 45 to 55 minutes, until the custard is set in the center. A wooden skewer inserted in the center of the custard should come out clean. Remove from the bain-marie/water bath and let cool at room temperature. Refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.
- To serve, run a thin-bladed knife around the custard edge and invert on a plate to unmold. Some of the caramel will remain stuck to the bottom of the ramekins.
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February 10th, 2009 at 2:55 am
Oh, how delightful! These Orange Custards look really beautiful and must taste extremely good!
Cheers,
Rosa
February 10th, 2009 at 3:11 am
THe caramel layer looks perfect! Thanks for the corn syrup tiP!
February 10th, 2009 at 3:16 am
I love Penelope Casas, but haven’t tried this recipe–it looks wonderful! And I love that you don’t have to heat the eggs beforehand.
February 10th, 2009 at 5:30 am
Flan is one of the best desserts, The orange flan, stunning, and I’ve never had the delight of tasting orange flan.. The photos look fabulous.
February 10th, 2009 at 6:13 am
Ciao ! This is really a wonderful and healthy idea !!!
February 10th, 2009 at 7:24 am
Looks so beautiful and yummy.
In our language in India in malayalam we call orange Naranja too.
February 10th, 2009 at 7:58 am
i love how you made this leche flan – yum!
February 10th, 2009 at 8:06 am
I have made flans with a lot of different flavors, but never occurred to me to try orange. It looks so appetizing that I want some for breakfast now
February 10th, 2009 at 8:27 am
Flan always make me thing of being in Spain
February 10th, 2009 at 8:34 am
Those look beautiful and delicious!!
February 10th, 2009 at 8:58 am
jude, anything you do is fabulous.. you must have the Midas’ touch!
) forget breakfast, lunch or dinner — you can give me those flans and i’ll live on it 
)
February 10th, 2009 at 9:01 am
Caramel is my favorite, and orange flan sounds fantastic! The ingredient list is so simple, and it’s a beautiful dessert.
February 10th, 2009 at 10:09 am
Hee! Congratulations on the perfect caramel– my problem has always been cleaning up! My pan heats unevenly so there’s always one spot that gets stuck-on sugar, yecch. I can’t believe this dairy-less custard worked– it looks fantastic! I gotta try it sometime.
February 10th, 2009 at 10:19 am
Looks & sounds wonderful….I love flan! Thanks for the helpful tips.
I’m gonna check out your archives & see what else you have hidden!
~ingrid
February 10th, 2009 at 11:29 am
i’m not a real big fan of custardy things, but i’ll give anything doused in caramel a chance.
February 10th, 2009 at 11:36 am
Dairy-less custard? Who knew? Behold the power of eggs!
February 10th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
what an interesting recipe. This i have to try there are so great oranges at the moment. Hope I don’t screw up the caramel, I m great in that.Hopefully following your instructions I won’t do that
February 10th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
Just the other day my uncle asked if I would post a flan recipe. Looks like I might have to start here. Thanks for sharing!
February 10th, 2009 at 1:23 pm
Great substitution ideas. And all this time, we thought you had to have milk/cream in order to create a true custard.
February 10th, 2009 at 1:49 pm
Oh my! That looks absolutely divine and the orange looks so fresh tasting. My last experiment with carmelizing sugar did not turn out well though…
February 10th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
This looks pretty fabulous. Flan is one of my favorite desserts, and I love citrus. Yet another one of your posts that I have to bookmark!
February 10th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
So pretty and colourful! I have this book on my wishlist – have you tried any other recipes? Would you recommend it?
February 10th, 2009 at 5:14 pm
Wow, a light custard, I like the sounds of that. And that picture of the oranges-absolute perfection!
February 10th, 2009 at 7:09 pm
This one is unusually light! And I have no doubts about its deliciousness!
February 10th, 2009 at 8:43 pm
Beautiful! And I hope that burning a bunch of sugar eventually means you are an expert – maybe I haven’t burnt enough yet?
February 10th, 2009 at 9:46 pm
Oh how I love flan…this is just a delicious sounding recipe.
February 11th, 2009 at 12:37 am
Duo – I wasn’t sure if orange juice and eggs can be considered a custard, too. I looked up a few sources, and it looks like any liquid thickened with eggs qualifies as a custard:
http://blog.ruhlman.com/elements_of_cooking/2007/11/blogging-elem-1.html
Natashya – I definitely recommend it. My only gripe about it is the lack of photos. Sometimes I have no idea what a dish is supposed to look like. The recipes are solid with the exception of the bread section. Some of the baking times and ingredient proportions just seem way off.
February 11th, 2009 at 1:40 am
I love flan. I could eat a whole pan but I like leche flan best.
February 11th, 2009 at 3:48 am
Thanks for the tip regarding the caramel. That has always been a trouble spot for me whenever I make custards. Btw, I think the Filipino word for winter melon is kundol – not the candy, though.
February 11th, 2009 at 8:01 am
I love jiggly desserts
And thanks for the light bulb moment re. the corn syrup!
p/s
I’ve never made popovers. Is the batter similar to the dutch babies, then?
February 11th, 2009 at 8:28 am
Love flan. Once, a guy I was dating made it for me: what a way to a girl’s heart
Your pictures are beautiful as always.
February 11th, 2009 at 9:12 am
Ooh, I love flan de naranja. I made it for New Year’s Eve dinner, the recipe from another Spanish cookbook.
Lovely photos as usual.
February 11th, 2009 at 2:19 pm
This is gorgeous. I love flans in general, but this recipe, with the citrus and caramel, is irresistible. Between the recipe itself and your orange and egg photo, this post is a thing of beauty!
February 11th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
This looks so good it makes me wish I liked orange. And for me, that’s saying a lot…
February 11th, 2009 at 10:51 pm
the orange hue is so vibrant and your lighting is always perfect. looks super delicious ;p~
February 12th, 2009 at 12:32 am
Custards are my favorite of all desserts – creamy, sweet and a little savory (the egginess is the winner). Beautiful with the orange, Jude.
February 12th, 2009 at 9:37 am
That is a very refreshing idea. I make the regular caramel one, never thought of using the orange juice… when i alwyas like anything orange.. i think i’ll give this a try sometimes..
February 12th, 2009 at 10:31 am
Flans and creme caramels are so easy, delish and like here, versatile (not to mention pretty).
February 12th, 2009 at 10:41 am
Hi, thanks for recipe. I made this last night. I’ve never made flan before nor eatened much, but i made a test run for my gf for this weekend. anyhow, i didn’t have corn syrup so i substituted honey (not sure if it has the same effect). The caramel immediately hardened in the ramiken. I followed the remainder of your instructions and when i unmolded after chilling overnight, there was a thin amber film of caramel on top. Is that supposed to be correct or should the entire hard caramel be on top? Most of the caramel remained in the ramiken.
February 12th, 2009 at 10:58 am
Wow, there’s no dairy in this? Amazing! This would be a perfect treat for my friends who are lactose-intolerant.
February 12th, 2009 at 12:10 pm
Lovely, and the idea of adding orange is very enticing. I must remember this for my next custard while citrus is still in season.
February 12th, 2009 at 12:14 pm
Now that is absolutely gorgeous! Your photos keep getting better and better (as if that was possible???). I so want this right now!
February 12th, 2009 at 11:00 pm
How interesting! I didn’t know it was possible to make custard without milk or cream. So there, I learned something today
Your orange custard looks absolutely perfect and delish!
February 15th, 2009 at 11:07 am
Hong, Sounds like you got it right. I should’ve mentioned that the caramel is supposed to set in the ramekin (I edited the instructions). Ideally you want as much of the caramel on the flan when you unmold it, but some of it will remain stuck to the bottom of the ramekin no matter what.
February 17th, 2009 at 8:44 pm
This custard sans milk/cream is very intriguing for me.
February 25th, 2009 at 3:21 am
simply gorgeous jude! please excuse me for missing a few great posts here. but now i am drooling! love the orange falvors!
February 26th, 2009 at 9:10 am
I like leche flan, but I have to avoid sweets.
Is there such thing as no sugar leche flan?
March 2nd, 2009 at 9:19 pm
Splenda might work but don’t hold me to it. Something tells me it might not set up properly.
April 1st, 2009 at 12:20 am
leche flan without the guilt! sarap!!!
May 2nd, 2009 at 8:28 pm
Made this tonight. Absolutely delicious.
August 14th, 2009 at 11:13 pm
I HAD A RECIPE, AND LOST IT, IT TOOK ME LIKE 2 HRS TO
FIND YOUR RECIPE. WOW!!!! I WAS SO HAPPY. I ONLY REMEMBER
8 EGGS AND 2CUPS OR OJ. AND 1 CUP OR SUGAR, I MIX IT,
BUT YOUR RECIPE LOOKS WONDERFUL, MINE IS IN THE OVEN
RIGHT NOW. I HOPE IT TURNS OUT OK. I USUALLY MAKE MINE
WITH CARNATION AND PUT PUMPKIN ON IT, CAUSE I DON’T CARE
FOR JUST MILK AND EGGS, TOO DULL. CAN’T WAIT FOR TOMORROW,
I’M TAKING MY O.J. FLAN TO MY COUSINS TO SUPRICE THEM
BESIDES IT’S MY BIRTHDAY 8/16, SO THATS MY CAKE, THKS.!!!!
March 4th, 2010 at 2:14 am
Hi..do u use metric cup or US cup? plzzzz let me know as i want to try this asap..i usually measure my ingredients in grams
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April 25th, 2012 at 3:45 pm
Just wanted you to know that somebody submitted your recipe in a contest. http://www.reciperiot.com/recipes/submission/167
September 30th, 2012 at 12:05 pm
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al kabee