Chocolate Flan With Toffee Popcorn Recipes

CHOCOLATE FLAN CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat 12-cup fluted tube pan with no-stick cooking spray. Place piece of rolled up foil in tube of pan to prevent cake from baking over top. Pour caramel topping into prepared pan.
• Prepare cake mix according to package directions using the water, oil and eggs. Pour evenly over caramel topping.
• Combine cream cheese, eggs, sweetened condensed milk, evaporated milk and vanilla in blender container. Process until blended. Pour slowly over cake batter. NOTE: While baking, the cake rises and the milk mixture goes to the bottom.
• Coat piece of foil with no-stick cooking spray. Cover pan, coated side down, tightly with foil. Place pan in large roasting pan. Pour hot water into roasting pan to a depth of 2 inches.
• Bake 2 hours or until toothpick in center still has a few moist crumbs. Place cake on cooling rack. Cool 15 minutes. Remove foil and invert onto serving plate. Cool 1 hour at room temperature. Chill 4 hours or overnight.

CHOCOLATE TOFFEE POPCORN

Steps:

• In a large pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. When it is hot, add the popcorn kernels and cover the pot. Once the popcorn starts to pop, reduce the heat to medium. Hold the lid on the pot and shake the pot until the popping stops. Transfer the popped popcorn to a large bowl and discard any unpopped kernels. Add the pecans.
• Butter two large rimmed baking sheets. In a medium-sized heavy-bottomed pot with a candy thermometer attached, heat the butter, sugar, salt, and 2 tablespoons water over medium heat, swirling the pot occasionally, until the butter has melted. Cook the mixture until the candy thermometer reads 300 degrees F. Then remove the pot from the heat and quickly stir in the vanilla. Be careful; it will spatter a bit. Stir in the baking soda.
• Carefully pour the mixture over the popcorn, and immediately stir the popcorn well to coat it in the warm toffee. Spread the coated popcorn out on the prepared baking sheets, and sprinkle with salt. Let the popcorn stand until it is completely cool.
• Transfer the chocolate to a double boiler or large heat-proof bowl set over a pot of barely simmering water. Melt the chocolate, stirring it occasionally. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment.
• Carefully drop a few pieces of popcorn into the melted chocolate and flip it around with two forks. Lift the coated popcorn out, tap it against the side of the bowl to remove any excess chocolate, and transfer it to the parchment lined baking sheet. Repeat with half of the remaining popcorn. Transfer the chocolate-dipped popcorn to the fridge until set, about 20 minutes. Extra chocolate can be cooled, wrapped in plastic, and used again.
• When the chocolate popcorn has set, toss it with the plain toffee popcorn in a large bowl, and serve. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days.

CHOCOLATE WINTER FLAN

Steps:

• In a blender, blend together the eggs, evaporated milk, condensed milk, whole milk, cocoa, allspice and cinnamon until well incorporated and creamy. Bake either using the water bath or double boiler method below.
• To bake using the water bath method: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Caramelize the sugar in a pan over the stovetop until a light golden brown, using a wooden spoon to stir. This is the trickiest part as sugar burns easily, so don't let it get too dark and keep mixing the sugar with the spoon. Don't step away from this process; once the sugar gets hot, it browns quickly. Once it is completely liquefied, pour into an ovensafe 6- to 8-inch round mold (a tempered glass pie dish works well) and coat the bottom and sides three-quarters of the way up.
• Fill an oven roasting pan or baking dish with about 1 inch of water and place the sugar-coated pie dish inside. Add the flan mixture to the pie dish and bake until the top is firm and the flan starts to pull away from the sides, about 45 minutes. Remove from the water bath and let cool to room temperature, about 2 hours.
• To transfer the flan to a serving plate, make sure the sides are loose (you can run a thin knife around the edges to make sure it is not sticking to the sides), put a plate on top and in one fluid motion, invert the flan onto the plate and remove the pie dish. Refrigerate to chill before slicing and serving.
• To bake using the double boiler method: If you have a double boiler pan (which is what I typically use and is easier!), caramelize the sugar in the double boiler insert on the stovetop using the same method as above. Remove from the heat and, using a wooden spoon and by tilting and rotating the pan, coat all sides of the pan three-quarters of the way up.
• Fill the other double boiler pan with water about one-quarter full and bring to a boil while the sugar is caramelizing.
• Pour the flan mixture into the caramel and put the double boiler insert over the pan with the hot water. Cover and cook over medium low until the flan appears more solid and pulls away from the sides, about 45 minutes. Let cool to room temperature for about 2 hours before inverting onto a serving plate using the same method as above. Refrigerate and serve cold.

TOFFEE CARAMEL FLAN

Steps:

• Butter six 3/4-cup ramekins.
• Combine the white sugar with the water in a small, heavy saucepan and bring to a boil. Cook until the sugar reaches a dark golden brown. Immediately pour about 2 tablespoons into each of the ramekins, tilting to spread the caramel evenly along the bottom. Arrange the ramekins in a baking dish 2 inches deep and set aside.
• Combine the milk, cream, cinnamon stick and vanilla bean in a heavy saucepan. Bring just to a boil, cover and remove from the heat. Let steep for about 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Whisk the eggs, yolks, brown sugar, molasses and Amaretto together in a medium bowl. Uncover the milk mixture and return it to the stove. Bring just to the boil again. Whisk about one-third of the hot milk into the egg-sugar mixture to temper it. Whisk in the remaining hot milk. Strain the custard through a fine sieve. (We skipped this step.) Pour into the caramel-lined ramekins, filling them to just below the rim. Pour enough warm water into the bottom of the baking pan to reach halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until almost set but still somewhat liquid in the center.
• Chill completely before serving. To unmold, run a small knife around the edge of the custard, invert onto a serving plate and give the ramekin a firm, sideways shake.

CHOCOLATE FLAN

Steps:

• Cook ½ cup sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until it begins to melt and turn brown around the edges. Using a heatproof rubber spatula, pull melted sugar at edges toward center of unmelted sugar. Continue cooking, pulling in melted sugar, until all the sugar is melted and caramel is uniformly dark brown (it should smell toasty but not burnt), 10-12 minutes total (if you still have undissolved lumps of sugar, stir off heat until they melt). Pour caramel into 8"-diameter cake pan to create an even, ⅛"-¼" deep layer. Let cool.
• Bring 1 cup water to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Whisk in cocoa powder until no lumps remain, then add cream, milk, vanilla bean and cinnamon stick and return to a simmer. Remove from heat and let steep 30 minutes.
• Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 350°. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Purée eggs with sugar and ¼ teaspoon salt in a blender until smooth and sugar is dissolved, about 1 minute. Strain chocolate mixture into egg mixture and blend at low speed to combine, discard solids. Skim foam off the top and transfer to prepared baking dish.
• Line a roasting pan with a thick kitchen towel; this will keep baking dish from sliding and will insulate flan, preventing it from overcooking. Set dishes on towel and place roasting pan in oven. Pour boiling water into pan until it reaches the same level as flan in baking dishes. Bake flan until it looks set like Jell-O (it will wobble when gently shaken), 35-45 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool. Cover with plastic and chill until set and cold, at least 3 hours and up to 24.
• Meanwhile, increase oven to 350°. Toss sesame seeds, syrup, and ¼ teaspoons salt in a small bowl. Scrape onto a silpat- or parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet and spread in a even layer. Bake brittle until sesame are golden brown and syrup is bubbly, 15-20 minutes. Let cool until hardened, then break up into small pieces; discard any dark brown, bitter pieces.
• Run a small knife around edges of flan to loosen. Invert onto a platter and top with crushed candy.
• Do Ahead: Flan can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Unmold and serve.