Cardamom-Coconut Crème Caramel

A prime make-ahead option, these delicately flavored custards make a light finish to a hearty Thanksgiving feast.

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 custard)

Ingredients

• Cooking spray
• 1  cup  sugar, divided
• 3  tablespoons  water
• 2  cups  whole milk
• 2  cups  flaked sweetened coconut
• 3  green cardamom pods
• 1  cup  half-and-half
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 4  large eggs, lightly beaten

Preparation

1. Lightly coat 8 (6-ounce) custard cups or ramekins with cooking spray. Combine 1/2 cup sugar and 3 tablespoons water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat; cook 2 minutes or until sugar dissolves, stirring gently as needed to dissolve sugar evenly. Cook an additional 4 minutes or until golden (do not stir). Immediately pour into prepared ramekins, tipping quickly to coat bottoms of cups.

2. Preheat oven to 300°.

3. Heat milk, coconut, and cardamom over medium-high heat in a medium, heavy saucepan to 180° or until tiny bubbles form around edge (do not boil). Remove from heat; cover and let stand 15 minutes. Strain the milk mixture through a cheesecloth-lined sieve into a medium bowl. Gather edges of cheesecloth together; squeeze over bowl to release moisture. Discard solids.

4. Combine remaining 1/2 cup sugar, half-and-half, salt, and eggs in a large bowl; gradually add milk mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Divide mixture evenly among prepared custard cups. Place in a roasting pan; add hot water to pan to a depth of 1 inch. Bake at 300° for 25 minutes or until center barely moves when ramekin is touched. Cool completely in water. Place plastic wrap on the surface of the custards; chill at least 6 hours. Loosen edges of custards. Invert the custard cups onto plates. Drizzle any remaining caramelized syrup over custards.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

213

Fat:

8.2g (sat 4.3g,mono 1.5g,poly 0.5g)

Protein:

6g

Carbohydrate:

29.7g

Fiber:

0.1g

Cholesterol:

123mg

Iron:

0.5mg

Sodium:

133mg

Calcium:

114mg