A signature holiday pie—pumpkin—is reinterpreted as a dinner-party dessert for any time of year. If you don’t have the exact pans called for, just be sure that the pastry shells are slightly larger than the flans.
Recipe information
Yield
makes 8
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Prepare an ice-water bath. Combine 2 cups sugar and the water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring, until sugar dissolves. Cover pan; bring to a boil. Leave cover on until condensation washes down sides of pan. Remove cover; boil until syrup turns deep amber. Quickly dunk bottom of pan in ice water, and remove. Rapidly divide caramel among eight 4-inch ramekins or custard cups. Swirl to coat bottoms. Let cool. (This can be done several hours ahead of time, and ramekins left at room temperature.)
Step 2
Preheat oven to 325°F. In a saucepan, bring milk just to a boil. Remove from heat. In a large bowl, whisk to combine pumpkin, remaining 3/4 cup sugar, the ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, whole eggs, and egg yolks until smooth. Mix in vanilla and hot milk; pass through a fine sieve, discarding solids. Pour mixture into caramel-lined ramekins, filling each 1 inch high; transfer ramekins to a large roasting pan.
Step 3
Place roasting pan in oven; carefully pour very hot water into roasting pan to reach halfway up outsides of ramekins. Loosely tent with foil. Bake 60 to 65 minutes, or until centers of flans are nearly set; a thin-bladed knife inserted into center should come out clean. Carefully transfer ramekins to a wire rack to cool completely. Refrigerate overnight, covered with plastic wrap.
Step 4
Preheat oven to 375°F. Place eight 5-inch flan rings or tart pans on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet. On a lightly floured surface, roll out each disk of dough 1/8 inch thick. Cut out eight 7-inch rounds. Fit dough into flan rings; trim flush with rims. Pierce bottoms of shells all over with a fork. Refrigerate or freeze until firm, about 30 minutes.
Step 5
Line shells with parchment; fill each with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 20 minutes, and remove weights and parchment; bake 6 to 8 minutes more, or until shells are golden brown. Let shells cool completely on wire rack. Remove from flan rings.
Step 6
To unmold each flan, dip ramekin bottoms in a pan of hot water, and pat them dry with a towel. Carefully run a knife around inside edge to loosen flan. Place a pastry shell on a plate. Gently invert flan into shell so it is centered, with caramel sauce filling edges. Serve with whipped cream or crème fraîche, if desired.
