Mango Strawberry Fruit Flan with Crème Pâtissière Filling
By: Anna C
Published: Thursday, June 21, 2012 - 11:30am

Ingredients




Sponge Cake Base:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup cornstarch
1 cup sugar
9 tablespoons melted butter
2 teaspoons baking powder
4 eggs
Simple Syrup:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons orange liqueur (optional)
Crème Pâtissière:
2 cups whole milk
1 vanilla bean
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons Galliano liqueur or liqueur of choice (optional)
1 tablespoon butter

Preparation

1 Sponge Cake Base: 2 Preheat the oven to 350º F. 3 Grease and flour a 10" flan pan. 4 Sift the flour, cornstarch, and baking powder into a large mixing. In a separate bowl beat 4 eggs and the melted butter. 5 Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. 6 Mix with a wooden spoon until blended. 7 Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes. 8 Note: The original recipe calls for 1/4 cup of all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup cornstarch, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 4 1/2 tablespoons melted butter,and only 2 eggs. Given that I like to use a large tart tin and prefer a thicker cake base (about 2 inches high), the recipe is doubled. 9 Simple Syrup: 10 In a saucepan, bring to boil the sugar and water. 11 When the sugar is dissolved, remove from the heat. 12 Stir in the liqueur. 13 Crème Pâtissière: 14 Pour the milk and vanilla into a saucepan and heat to just below the boiling point. 15 Remove from the heat and let stand for 15 minutes to allow the vanilla flavour to infuse. 16 Strain the milk and reheat. 17 In a mixing bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar until pale and thick. 18 Whisk in the flour until well incorporated into the wet ingredients. 19 Gradually whisk in the hot milk until blended. 20 Transfer to a heavy-based saucepan and whisk continuously, over medium heat until the custard thickens and begins to boil. 21 Simmer and continue whisking for an additional two minutes to allow the flour to cook. 22 Remove from the heat and blend in the butter. Whisk in the Galliano liqueur or liqueur of choice if desired. 23 Transfer to a bowl and place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the custard to prevent a film from forming. 24 Note: Normally, the knob of butter is rubbed on the surface of the cooked custard to prevent a skin from forming. I prefer using the plastic wrap for that purpose and integrate the butter into the custard for extra flavour. I feel it also gives a much smoother finish to the custard. 25 The recipe makes more than enough to cover the cake surface. I ended having about half a cup of the crème pâtissière leftover.

About

There is no need to tackle pie crust dough with this strawberry mango fruit flan recipe. The sponge cake base is easy to make and perfect for the creamy custard filling. It is baked and then brushed with an orange liqueur syrup to moisten and enhance the flavour of the sponge cake. It is then topped with the crème pâtissière filling, which is brought up an extra notch by adding a touch of Galliano liquere. Refreshing strawberries, mango, and clementine slices and a simple glaze add the finishing touch to this luscious dessert.

Comments:
pat rutter

This looks faaaaaaabulous...going to try and make it for Friday company dinner...
pat rutter

I just finished the prep for all the instructions.   Nothing is ever said..what to do with the 'simple syrup'.  Nothing is said about applying the creme patissiere...to the cake.  You picture doesnt show the same color of patissiere as what I have. Mine is very light yellow.  Your picture shows a glycerine like look all over the top.  Is that the simple syrup???
So far...not looking great.  I will do what comes naturally...I guess!
Anna C

Hi Pat, thanks for bringing this to my attention. I'm sorry for the trouble you have had with the recipe. In my case the colour of the crème pâtissière filling has always turned out a light creamy yellow. I guess it is possible that the yolk of the egg can affect the depth of colour. Regarding the missing directions, please accept my apologies. I've copied the directions as posted on my blog.
 Liqueur Glaze:
1/2 cup peach jam
3 teaspoons Triple Sec liqueur or other orange liqueur
In a small saucepan, heat the jam until melted. Turn off the heat and stir in the liqueur.
Note: I did not strain the glaze, opting to have the pieces of peaches as part of the topping.
Assembly:
Place the sponge cake on a serving platter and brush the surface with the peach syrup.
Gently spread the crème pâtissière on the surface of the cake. Decorate the top with the strawberries, mangoes and clementine pieces. Brush or drizzle with the liqueur peach glaze.
pat rutter

Thanks for your response.  I will print the latter part I didn't have.  My company said the cake was very good.  I guess I was expecting something different...I didn't care for it...but liked the fruit.  The sponge cake came out dry...but luckily I had so much flan left over I let it drizzle all over the place.  I used lemon zest with the mangos, as somehow the storage eeked out the flavor.  Thanks again. :)