What’s more enticing than a luxuriously smooth and decadent vegan coconut flan? This recipe comes from Jocelyn Ramirez’ cookbook La Vida Verde and is an expression of plant-based Mexican cooking. A coconut flan is the perfect summer dessert, and this one is no exception.

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As one of the most popular desserts in Mexican food culture, the flan is often served as a sugary, creamy, custardy confection. However, variations like this vegan coconut flan are equally as delicious. The dessert has four main steps, all of which are straightforward.

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Coconut flan

This flan del coco recipe uses a coconut-flavored base and uses an egg replacer to give that rich flavor that makes a flan, flan. You'll use tofu, coconut cream and milk, raw sugar, vanilla, and pretty edible flowers for serving.

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Servings

Ingredients

For the syrup

6 tbsp (85 g) raw sugar
¼ cup (60 ml) water

For the flan

1½ cups (360 ml) unsweetened coconut milk
⅓ cup (80 ml) unsweetened coconut cream
2 tbsp (16 g) agar powder
2 tbsp (10 g) egg replacer such as Follow Your Heart VeganEgg
½ cup (120 ml) ice-cold water
2 tbsp (32 g) strained and squeezed extra-firm tofu
¼ cup (45 g) raw sugar
1 tbsp (15 ml) vanilla
Pinch of turmeric for color
Pinch of salt

For serving

¼ cup (8 g) marigold petals, or another edible flower

Instructions

To make the syrup, melt down the sugar and water in a small pot until the crystals dissolve. Add the syrup to the bottom of a 6-inch (15-cm) mold or 3 small (2-inch [5-cm]) molds for individual servings.
To make the flan, add the coconut milk, coconut cream and agar powder to a saucepan. Let it sit for 10 minutes, and then bring to a simmer while whisking constantly. Reduce the heat to low, whisking until all the agar powder completely dissolves. Take the pan off of the heat and set aside.
Combine the egg replacer with the ice-cold water in a medium bowl. Slowly whisk until the mixture is completely smooth. Set aside.
Place the tofu, sugar, vanilla, turmeric and salt in blender and blend until completely smooth. Add the blended tofu mixture to the hot coconut and agar mixture and whisk to combine. Slowly pour the coconut-tofu mixture into the egg replacer bowl while whisking.
Whisk until completely smooth. Pour the mixture into the flan mold(s) over the syrup. Cover the dish with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
To remove from the baking dish, dip into hot water for 15 seconds, then flip onto a platter. Serve the flan on a platter and top with edible flower petals in a ring around the edge of the flan.

Chef’s Note: If you can’t find edible flowers, you can use toasted coconut shreds as a garnish.

Reprinted with permission from La Vida Verde by Jocelyn Ramirez. Page Street Publishing Co. 2020. Photo credit: Zohra Banon.

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