For today’s recipe, we took the classic leche flan recipe and gave it a colorful Filipino twist with purple yam (aka Ube). Also, we made one out of it dairy free, egg free and vegan dessert, with a few simple ingredients. Read on and discover how we did it!
Flan or crème caramel is a famous custard dessert with a caramel sauce, and almost every country has its own twist. For example, in the Philippines, it is prepared with condensed milk instead of regular milk and more egg yolks than the French version. Filipinos usually call flan Tasty flanwhich means “milk flan” in Spanish.
There is also a wonderful tuber in the Philippines called Ube. It’s a yam with a bright purple flesh, and they use it to add color and flavor to all kinds of sweets and baked goods. It tastes sweet and nutty, some even say it is reminiscent of white chocolate. And we agree!
Since both leche flan and ube are two staples in Filipino cuisine, we thought, why not make a leche flan with ube? And so, here it is! It is as beautiful as it is delicious – and incredibly easy to do.
For the preparation, we replaced eggs and cow’s milk with vegan gelatin and plant-based oat milk. Classic flan relies on boiled eggs for texture, but the power of vegan gelatin delivers virtually the same result. Then we reduced the amount of sugar to save calories, but we also give you the option to use the sugar-free sweetener erythritol if you want to reduce the calories even further.
As for the ube, you have two options: either use it fresh purple yam like we did or buy the ube extract. You should be able to find one or two at your local Asian grocery store or online. We personally prefer the first option. That’s because most Ube extracts are only purple because they contain purple food coloring. And the only thing that might be in there is a bit of Ube “flavor”.
If you make this vegan flan with fresh purple yam instead, you can use the whole veggie. Turn it into a nice purple mash, mix it with some coconut oil and maple syrup, then add it to the flan mixture. You get the Ube taste, color and nutrients in one go.
And the great thing about making your Ube spread is that not only can you use it in this purple flan, but you can use it in many other Ube candies and casseroles. Impressively!