Tum...da...da...tum...And the Winners Are:

The winners of the three ATC's are:

Nature Girl

Sandy...who started Sharing HeART!

and

Alix

So, if each of you will email me, they will be on their way to you!


Now, I hope not a whole lot of you didn't make those scones, because I left out the Heavy Cream. So check out two posts back, and re-read the correct recipe.

And, here's another recipe...I'm going to post dessert recipes in honor of St. Valentine's Day. Here's the first one.

Rancho de Chimayó Flan
Serves 8

Custard
2 1/4 cups canned evaporated milk (9 1/2 12-oz. cans)
1 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cups water
6 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Caramel
1/4 cups sugar

Preheat the oven to 300˚F. Set 8 custard cups or other heat-proof cups on a counter within easy reach of the stove.

To prepare the custard, combine the ingredients in a double boiler's top pan. Beat with a whisk, or with a hand mixer at medium speed, for about 1 minute, or until the mixture is well blended and begins to froth at its rim.

Insert the pan over its water bath and heat the mixture over medium-low heat until it is warm throughout. Do NOT let the custard boil. Keep it warm over very low heat while preparing the caramel.

To prepare the caramel, place the sugar in a small, heavy saucepan or skillet. Cover over low heat, watching as the sugar melts into a golden brown syrup. There is no need to stir unless the sugar is melting unevenly. When the syrup turns a rich medium brown, immediately remove the pan from the heat. Carefully pour about about 1 tsp. of caramel into the bottom of each custard cup. They syrup in the cups will harden almost immediately. The quantity of syrup allows a little extra in case some of it hardens before you get all 8 cups filled.

To assemble the flan, pour the warmed custard mixture equally into the cupa, and place them in a baking pan large enough to accommodate all the cups with a little room for air circulation. Add warm water to the pan, enough to cover the bottom third of the cups, and bake for 1 3/4 hours. Check to see if the custard is firm and its top has just begun to color a light brown; if not, bake for up to 10 minutes more.

Remove the cups from the oven and let them cool for 15 to 20 minutes at room temperature. Cover the cups and refrigerate them for at least 3 hours or overnight.

Just prior to serving, take the cups from the refrigerator and uncover them. Unmold the first dessert by running a knife between the custard and the cup. Invert onto a serving plate. Repeat with the remaining flans and serve.

REGIONAL VARIATIONS: Other traditional flans throughout the border region (of Texas and Mexico) are made with similar ingredients but come out lighter in texture due to higher-heat baking and a shorter cooking time. Contemporary versions today tinker with extra flavors rather than techniques, adding almond, coffee, coconut, chocolate, pumpkin, strawberry, and more. We think some of the supplements confuse rather than complement the taste, so we seldom change anything more than the evaporated milk, substituting a goat's milk version of the same.

This came from the cookbook The Border Cookbook: Authentic Home Cooking of the American Southwest and Northern Mexico by Cheryl Alters Jamison and Bill Jamison...it is a wonderful cookbook...fun to read as well as use!!