Instructions:
- 1/2 Cup Orange blossom honey to caramelize the ramekins*
- 3 Eggs
- 1−1/2 Cup Half and half; or light cream
- 3 Tablespoon Orange blossom honey*
- 2 Teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 Granny Smith apple
- 2 Red Delicious apples
- 1 Tablespoon Fresh lemon juice
- 1 Pint Strawberries
- 3 Tablespoon Butter
- 2 Teaspoon Orange blossom honey*
- 18 Whole blackberries
- 6 Sprigs fresh mint
- * Orange blossom honey gives this recipe a special flavor but you can use any honey you like.
TO PREPARE THE RAMEKINS: - Heat a medium saut pan, over high heat, or until very hot. Add the 1/2 cup of honey and cook over medium heat until the honey is a dark brown. Pour the honey into six 1/2 cup porcelain or oven−proof ramekins.
- With a pot holder to protect your hands, tilt each ramekin so the honey coats the bottom and sides. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
TO MAKE THE FLAN: - In a mixing bowl combine the eggs, half and half, 3 tablespoons honey and vanilla.
- Ladle this custard mixture into the prepared ramekins and set the ramekins in a baking pan filled with enough hot water to reach half way up the outside of the ramekins.
- Bake for an hour or until the flans are set and no longer wobbly.
TO MAKE THE FRUIT GARNISH: - While the flans are baking, core, peel and cut the apples into 1/4−inch dice. Toss them with some lemon juice so they do not discolor. Stem the strawberries and cut them into quarters.
TO FINISH THE FLANS AND GARNISH:
Remove the baking pan from the oven and remove the flans from the baking pan. In a 10−inch skillet over high heat, heat the butter. When the butter turns golden brown, add the apples and saut over high heat for about a minute or until the apples take on some color. Add the 2 teaspoons of honey and remove the skillet from the heat. Toss in the strawberries and stir to combine. With a knife, loosen the edges of the custards from the ramekins and turn each one, upside down, in the middle of a dessert plate. Not all the caramelized honey will come out. Spoon the apples and strawberries around the flan and set 3 blackberries over the fruit. Garnish each flan with a sprig of mint.
