Chocoflan

Here's a recipe my dad shared with me a few weeks ago for a Chocoflan cake. It was a huge hit with his friends and everyone raved about how good the combination of cake and custard was. I've never made flan before, but remember learning about it and tasting it in my seventh grade spanish class...wow that was a long time ago! I wasn't really a huge fan of flan way back when, but I have to admit this cake sure did change my opinion of this sweet custard dessert.

This past weekend I went to a Mexican themed party so I figured this Chocoflan cake would be the perfect dessert to take! How good does this caramel drizzle and pecan topping look on top of the flan custard? It was hard to not sneak a taste of this cake before the party.

The way this cake bakes is pretty neat. You make the chocolate cake mixture in one bowl and pour it into a buttered bundt pan that has been drizzled with caramel first. Then you make the custard mixture in a blender and pour the custard over the chocolate cake. The magic of this cake occurs in the baking...the custard sinks to the bottom of the bundt pan and the cake rises to the top.


Don't you wish you had a piece of this delicious cake? Well here's the recipe, so what are you waiting for, go whip one up for your next party!

Chocoflan (recipe from Marcela Valladolid, Food Network)

Ingredients
-12 cup capacity bundt pan
-softened butter, to coat pan
-1/4 cup cajeta or caramel sauce

For the cake:
-10 tablespoons butter, room temperature
-1 cup sugar
-1 egg, room temperature
-1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
-3/4 teaspoon baking powder
-3/4 teaspoon baking soda
-1/3 cup cocoa powder
-1 1/4 cups buttermilk

For the flan:
-1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
-1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
-4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
-3 eggs
-1 tablespoon vanilla extract

For garnish:
-1/4 cup cajeta or caramel sauce
-1/4 cup chopped pecans

• Put an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
• Coat a bundt pan with a little butter, then coat the bottom with 1/4 cup cajeta and put it in a large roasting pan. (The roasting pan will serve as a water bath during baking.)
• For the cake: Add the butter and sugar to a bowl and using an electric hand mixer or stand mixer, beat until light and fluffy, then beat in the egg. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and cocoa in a medium bowl. Beat 1/3 of the flour mixture, and 1/2 of the buttermilk into the egg mixture. Repeat, ending with the flour mixture. Blend until well incorporated.
• For the flan: In a blender, combine the evaporated milk, condensed milk, cream cheese, eggs and vanilla. Blend on high for 30 seconds.
• Scoop the cake batter into the prepared bundt pan and spread evenly. Slowly pour the flan mixture over the cake batter. Cover with foil and add about 1-inch of hot water to the roasting pan.
• Carefully slide the pan into the oven, and bake 1 hour, until the surface of the cake is firm to the touch, or an inserted toothpick comes out clean. When cake is done, remove from the water bath and cool completely to room temperature, about 1 hour.
• Invert a large, rimmed serving platter over the bundt pan, grasp tightly together, giggle a little an flip over. Remove the pan and scrape any remaining cajeta from the pan onto the cake, garnish with chopped pecans and serve!
• Cook's Notes: The batters may appear to mix when you pour them into the pan, but they completely separate while baking, with the flan ending up on the bottom when it's inverted. I like eating it warm, but traditionally, it is chilled 24 hours before serving.
• Cajeta is a thick and creamy spread or paste made with caramelized sugar and milk. It is used as as dessert on its own or as a topping. Also known as "dolce de leche", it is sold in many supermarkets, Latin specialty markets or onlion. It can be substituted with a thick caramel sauce.

ENJOY!