Sweet Squash Flan

My Savory Squash Flan was such a success that I thought I’d follow it up with a sweet one - it’s just as easy as the savory. 

Tis the season of sweet treats so perhaps you can feel a little better about yourself by serving up a local veggie for dessert.  This flan isn’t too sweet or rich so it can do double duty as a brunch buffet item.

Get the squash at your winter farmer’s market or CSA… or worst case scenario pick one up that’s been hiding out near the old Halloween pumpkins at your grocers.  Worst WORST case scenario you can pick up a can of squash mash at your closest Whole Foods or similar.

Sweet Squash Flan

1 medium butternut squash (or can of squash puree)
1/2 plus 1/3 cup sugar
1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
4 freerange eggs
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cloves

Preheat oven to 375.

Halve the squash lengthwise, discard the seeds, and place cut side down on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil. Bake for an hour, or until soft to the touch all over. Cool and set aside.

Reduce oven temp to 350

Scoop flesh from the squash. Discard the skin. Puree in a blender until smooth and creamy.

Pour 1/2 cup of sugar into a small heavy saucepan.  Heat over medium-low.  When sugar is fully melted pour into a round 9″ cake pan, quickly tipping the pan before the caramel cools to coat the bottom.
 
Combine 1 1/2 cups of squash puree, 1/3 cup sugar, eggs, evaporated milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves in a medium-sized bowl or blender.  Blend until combined.

Pour the batter into the caramel-coated cake pan. Place the cake pan in a larger shallow pan or baking sheet.  Add an inch of hot water to the larger pan.
 
Bake for 50 minutes or until the center of the flan is a consistent texture to the edges and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool fully - at least 2 hours. To serve, loosen edges of the flan with a thin knife, place a large plate over the flan and quickly invert onto the plate.

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 20th, 2007 at 1:57 pm and is filed under Desserts, Winter. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.