Mini Orange Flan Cakes

These Mini Orange Flan Cakes are my new favorite dessert. The combination of the creme caramel and the orange fluffy chiffon cake makes this dessert really special. There are three important steps to making this zesty, sweet, custardy cake – Caramel, Creamy Custard and Fluffy Chiffon Cake.

Caramel, Custard, Chiffon Cake 

Step 1: Caramel

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. The cake is going to bake in a water bath. I used a 9″X 13″ rectangular cake pan. Begin by making the caramel. In a medium sauce pan on medium heat, add the sugar, water lemon juice and cook until it reaches a medium color. Gently swirl the pan once to even out the color and prevent the sugar from burning in isolated spots.  I like my caramel to reach a medium in richness but If you like it darker and richer in color and flavor, just cook it longer. Note: Be careful not to burn the caramel because it will turn very bitter. Keep an eye on it. Once the caramel is done, pour it in the pan and spread it to coat the pan evenly. Set the pan aside to allow the caramel to set.

Step 2: Custard 

In a large bowl, add the egg yolks, sweetned condensed milk, heavy cream, evaporated milk and whisk. Now add the orange juice, vanilla extract and whisk until everything is incorporated.Pour the custard through a sieve to remove any clumps. 

Step 3: Chiffon Cake 

In a medium size bowl, add the egg yolks, sugar, orange juice, orange zest, vanilla extract and whisk. Now, add the oil, water and mix. In a separate bowl, sift in the cake flour and baking powder. Create a hole in the center of the flour and pour the wet batter and whisk until smooth and lump free.

In a separate large bowl whisk with a hand or stand electric mixer, egg whites with cream of tartar. Mix on low to medium speed until the mixture gets frothy. Now, mix on high and add the sugar in three parts until until you get stiff peaks. 

Fold ( do not whisk) in the whipped egg whites into the cake batter in 3 to 4 parts using a rubber spatula until fully incorporated.

Assembling the Mini Orange Flan Cakes 

Pour the custard over the set caramel. Then pour in the cake batter slowly over the custard. Do not worry about the custard and cake batter mixing. The cake batter is lighter than the custard and will float. If there are any visible large bubbles, poke it with a tooth pick. Place the pan in another large baking pan that’s at least 1-inch thick for the water bath. Place in the oven on the middle rack and carefully pour in the boiling water covering about 1/2 way or 3/4 ways up the sides of the outside of the pan. Bake the cake for 75 minutes at 350 F or until the top of the cake is golden. After 50 minutes, check on the cake and if you notice the top is golden and the center is still jiggley, place some foil on top of the cake to avoid it from develpoing a very dark color. 

Once the cake has baked, use a knife to scrape the edges of the cake and flip the cake onto a large rectangular plate. Place the cake in the fridge for at least 2- 4 hours to set. 

Once fully cooled, cut the sides of the cake ( this is optional but ensures that each cake comes out clean looking) and cut the cake into 20-26 mini cakes. You can top the cake with some whipped cream or candied oranges slices.

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5 from 1 vote

Mini Orange Flan Cakes

Course Dessert

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 10 minutes minutes

Resting Time 4 hours hours

Equipment

• 9"X 13" rectangular cake pan

Ingredients

Caramel

• 1 &1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice

Custard

• 7 eggs
• 1 cup sweetened condensed milk
• 1 cup heavy cream or regular milk
• 1&1/2 cup evaporated milk ( 1 can)
• 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
• 1 teaspoon vanialla extract
• 1 teaspoon orange zest

Chiffon Cake

• 1&1/2 cups plus 3 tablespoons of cake flour
• 1/3 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup neutral oil ( I used grapeseed oil)
• 1/2 cup water
• 1&1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 6 egg yolks
• 6 egg whites
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

Instructions

Caramel

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• In a medium saucepan on medium heat, melt the sugar, water and lemon juice until it reaches a medium color. I like my caramel to reach a medium in richness but If you like it darker and richer in color and flavor, just cook it longer. Note: Be careful not to burn the caramel because it will turn very bitter. Keep an eye on it. Once the caramel is done, pour it in the pan and spread it to coat the pan evenly. Set the pan aside to allow the caramel to set.

Custard

• In a large bowl, add the eggs , sweetened condensed milk, heavy cream, evaporated milk and whisk. Now add the orange juice, vanilla extract and whisk until everything is incorporated. Pour the custard through a sieve to remove any clumps.

  Note: If you notice the custard is thick, use a hand electric mixer to mix the custard for 15 seconds. This will make sure all the ingredients are incorporated well.

Orange Chiffon Cake

• In a medium size bowl, add the egg yolks, 4 tablepsoons of sugar, orange juice, orange zest, vanilla extract and whisk. Now, add the oil, water and mix.
• In a separate bowl, sift in the cake flour and baking powder. Create a hole in the center of the flour and pour the wet batter and whisk until smooth and lump free. 
• In a separate large bowl using a hand electric mixer, add the egg whites and cream of tartar. Mix on low to medium speed until the mixture gets frothy. Now, mix on high and add the remaining sugar in three parts until until you get stiff peaks. 
• Fold ( do not whisk) in the whipped egg whites into the cake batter in 3 to 4 parts using a rubber spatula until fully incorporated. 

Assembling the Mini Orange Flan Cakes 

• Pour in the custard over the set caramel. Then pour in the cake batter slowly over the custard. Do not worry about the custard and cake batter mixing. The cake batter is lighter than the custard and will float. If there are any visible large bubbles, poke it with a tooth pick.
• Place the pan in another large baking pan that’s at least 1-inch thick for the water bath. Place in the oven on the middle rack and carefully pour in the boiling water covering about 1/2 way or 3/4 ways up the sides of the outside of the pan. Bake the cake for 75 minutes at 350 F or until the top of the cake is golden. After 50 minutes, check on the cake and if you notice the top is golden and the center is still jiggley, place some foil on top of the cake to avoid it from develpoing a very dark color.
• Once the cake has baked, remove from the oven and use a knife to scrape the edges of the cake. Flip the cake onto a large rectangular plate. Place the cake in the fridge for at least 2- 4 hours to set. 
• Once fully cooled, cut the sides of the cake ( this is optional but ensures that each cake comes out clean looking) and cut the cake into 20-26 mini cakes. You can top the cake with some whipped cream or candied oranges slices.