SMS: Chocolate Malt Cake

Few weeks ago I was suppose to host the Sweet Melissa Sunday, but life got in the way and was way too busy to post this picture on time. This is one of the best Chocolate Malt cake I ever tasted, very malty so love the taste. It's like eating Maltesers in cake form. Maltesers aka Whoppers are small round shaped honey-combed covered with delicious chocolate. Yum! I still remember vividly, when I was in grade school I would save up my allowance so that I could buy Maltesers, and yes since they where quite expensive I didn't want to share. I would always keep it in my bag and when I got home I would go to my room, lock the door and eat happily savoring each bite! Yeah yeah! I'm selfish that way.
When given the opportunity to choose what to bake for SMS event, I didn't hesitate and chose a Chocolate Malt Cake. I've made cakes like this before so I have no doubt that my family would love it too! The cake smells so good I couldn't wait to frost it with the gooey frosting. I almost thought that the frosting isn't enough, it was so thick and sticky that it was harder to spread on the cake. I ended up with just barely there icing but it taste awesome! But! you have to be a malted milk fan, because this cake really taste like malted milk chocolates.I would have loved to spread more chopped Maltesers on top and on the sides, but then I was afraid that it would make the cake much too sweet and luckily I listened to my instinct and the cake turn out just perfect very moist and chocolaty. You can't tell that there was a coffee in the cake, the coffee just heighten and intensifies the chocolate flavor of the cake.

Vanilla Bean Leche Flan

Aside from being a chocolate fiend, I absolutely absolutely adore Creme Caramel, more popularly known in Manila as Leche Flan. My Aunt C makes a mean flan, every Christmas each family gets to take home it's own leche flan. Unlike in America, flans here are typically made not in a ramekin but in a liyanera. Liyanera is an oval shaped baking pan, these baking pans comes in various sizes and very affordable. So affordable that the gift giver doesn't ;expect to get his/her pan back. Even though I adore flans the first and the last time I made this was 2 years ago, Why it took me so long to make it again you ask? For the simple reason , my thighs and blood sugar cannot take anymore temptation. Sitting quietly in the fridge, I imagine it calling me to gobble it all up! With dozens of abandoned egg yolks in the fridge, I decided it was time to make leche flan and see if myself control got any stronger as I got older. Ha! who was I kidding!

Unlike my Aunt's flan, my version is much softer than I remember hers. Though that is not necessarily bad, it just more luscious which definitely translate as addictive in my book. I'm not sure if you could see it from the first picture, I used vanilla bean paste to make this more special and you could definitely see the vanilla flecks peppering the yummy custard surface. Instead of making regular kind or caramel, I made a burnt caramel to offset the sweetness of the flan itself, when you take a bite its a combination of flavors, the caramel is sweet and bitter and custard is smooth and silky.

This was such an easy process and makes a lot! Excellent choice to make the night before for those big Sunday brunch with the family.

LECHE FLAN
loosely adapted from my Aunt C's

• 8 egg yolks
  
• 1 small can condense milk
• 1 tall can evaporated milk
• 1 cup of sugar
  
• juice of 3 calamansi or quarter of a lemon
  
• water
  

1. Using a steamer, fill the bottom half with water and let it boil for a few minutes.
2. In a non stick saucepan, put 1 cup of white sugar and wait for it to melt. DO NOT STIR! Wait until smoke starts coming our and the sides or the center starts to melt then you can stir gently but decisively. Turn off the stove once all the sugar are melted and turned a rich amber color.
   
3. Evenly divide the caramel in 2 big liyaneras and evenly distribute the caramel at the bottom of each pan. Caution: use a pot holder when swirling the pan tho distribute the sugar, the liyanera by this time is very hot!
4. Gently whisk the egg yolks and the milk until homogenous. Using the empty condense milk can, fill it with water (twice) and milk the water in the egg yolk mixture. Stir until thoroughly combined but avoiding creating too much air bubbles.
   
5. With a fine mesh strainer, pour the mixture over the hardened caramel. Gently but securely cover the top of the pan with aluminium foil to avoid water seeping into the flan. put on the steamer and steam for 30 minutes or until the flan is set but still giggly in the center.
6. Cool to room temp. and put in the fridge overnight WITHOUT unmolding it.
   
7. Few minutes before serving, loosen the sides of the flan and invert into a rimmed plate. the flan should easily pop out and the caramel would have turned into liquid and generously pours over the sides of the flan.
   
8. Enjoy!