Torviewtoronto: Vietnamese Caramel Flan

Secrets from My Vietnamese Kitchen: Simple Recipes from My Many Mothers by Kim Thuy is written like a story book, which is fun to read. It gives insight into the culture that expresses love through food.

Between careers as a lawyer and an acclaimed novelist, Kim Thúy ran a celebrated restaurant called Ru de Nam in Montreal. Now, in her first cookbook, Kim combines her storytelling style with about 50 simple and wonderful recipes which is easy enough for every day. She introduces us to her mother and five aunts, each with her story, each with her secrets, told through the food of the country they had to leave, Vietnam.

Starting with easily-prepared base ingredients of sauces, quick pickled vegetables and toasted rice flour, we move on to soups, sautés, vegetables, grilled foods, desserts and more. Sample recipes include: Stuffed Squash Soup; Vermicelli Bowls; Fried Lemongrass Fish; and Vietnamese Tapioca and Banana. We see how important fish sauce in Vietnamese cuisine as it is used in most recipes. This book demonstrates that every meal is an opportunity to show love, and to be grateful for those who sit down to eat with us.

This Caramel Flan recipe is from the book. It serves 6. I found that next time, I can reduce the amount of sugar for the caramel syrup.

1 1/2 cups sugar divided

3 x-large eggs

2 tbsp water

2 cups milk

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Combine half the sugar with the water in a small saucepan and set it over medium heat and cook without stirring, until the mixture turns a deep amber caramel. Divide this caramel between six ramekins and let is cool.

In a bowl whisk half of the sugar with the eggs. In a small saucepan, heat the milk just to a simmer, and whisk the sugar and egg mixture into the milk. Divide this mixture between the ramekins or the serving dish.

Carefully transfer the ramekins to a baking dish. Pour hot (not boiling) water into the baking dish until it reaches halfway up the ramekins. Bake for 35 minutes.

Remove from the oven. Carefully life the ramekins out of the hot water bath. Let the flans cool completely on the counter or in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

To serve, slide a sharp knife along the inside of the ramekins, and invert it onto serving plates.