My flan recipe has been causing me problems the last few times I have made it.

I fill the loaf pan about two-thirds full with the flan mix. I set it in a 9" x 13" baking pan and fill that pan at least half full with hot water from the spigot and place it in the oven. In no way does it bake within 40 minutes as the recipe states it should. It is still liquidy at 40 minutes. It takes almost twice that time to set up or have a knife inserted in it come out clean. Herein lies my problem: When I serve it, it does not have a smooth taste or feel as it should...it is kind of grainy and you can see tiny holes in it.

Also, my oven is heated accurately.

Any suggestions...or perhaps give me another recipe. This did work perfectly in the past.

Here is the recipe so that you will know what I'm working with:

FLAN

1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cans Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 cans water
6 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
Pinch of salt

Optional: Serve with fresh whipped cream or Redi Whip in the spray can.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put a large shallow pan of water in oven to warm as oven is preheating. (I use a 9" x 13" cake pan to hold the water and put a little over 1" of water in it.)

Pour the sugar into a sauce pan with a few drops of water over low heat and stir continually with wooden spoon until the sugar is caramelized (light to medium golden brown). Pour into a loaf pan.

Beat eggs well with a wire whisk. Add other ingredients and mix thoroughly. Strain into loaf pan using a mesh strainer.

Put loaf pan into water bath and bake 40 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Chill. To serve, loosen sides with a knife and invert onto a plate. Use a table knife to cut off slices and add whipped cream to the top.

This is best if made the night before and allowed to chill and set up overnight.

Sounds like there's too much liquid for the number of eggs. Have you tried adding a couple more eggs to the recipe or only 1 can of water?

Thanks, Guanabanaman, for the suggestion. I'll give it a try.

Do you have a recipe you would like to recommend?

Foodfan, I don't have a recipe to recommend. This is odd since it's worked fine for you in the past. You could check online for some other recipes and compare them to yours. Cook's Illustrated or Fine Cooking might be good resources. This is one...

http://www.crumblycookie.net/2008/01/30 ... gest-flan/

Foodfan1, sorry, I should have read your message more carefully since you said this recipe worked perfectly before. Isn't the flan supposed to still be jiggly in the middle when it is taken out of the oven? Just that the graininess sounds like the flan was overcooked. Also, bubbles sound like too much air was whipped in when everything was mixed together.

Thanks, folks, for your fine suggestions. Champagne, I have copied and pasted the recipes.

Guanabanaman, thanks for your thoughts, also.

I'll let you know when I make it again or try one of the new recipes/