Flan my latest favorite dessert!

Flan is such a delightful thing and with just a few ingredients and no time you can make this fabulous dessert.

Ingredients:

1 can condensed milk

1 can evaporated milk

4 large eggs

1 package of cream chesse or 1 can half & half cream.
1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup of sugar (caster works fine)

Here it is how to do it:

Preheat your oven at 175 Celsius or 345 Fahrenheit prepare two molds one has to be bigger than the other because is for a water bath!

On a medium size pot melt sugar stirring the whole time it will start to crumble up but don't worry keep stirring (it takes a while) when your sugar is melted just make sure it has a nice caramel color to it!

(you don't need to add water) Pour the caramel into your mold and move it around so the caramel spreads evenly, let it cool down.

Next blend the eggs, evaporated and condensed milk, the cream chesse and the teaspoon of vanilla until incorporated pour this mix into the mold with the caramel and cover it with foil, put your mold in the other one and pour some water around it, pop it into the oven, let it bake for an hour. Cool down and put in the fridge for a few hours you could even make it a day ahead!! Unmold and serve, to decorate it you can do anything like whipped cream, can peaches, fresh strawberries, chopped walnuts or pecans! Here in Mexico they sell these caramel roasted pecans and they taste so good I love to use them whenever I can!!

I just want to share with you this little Patriots cupcakes I made for a football party! My mother in law asked me to make chocolate cupcakes with blue buttercream, I decided to kick them up a notch by putting a football on top of each!!!

Quiero compartirles estos pastelillos que hice para una fiesta de Football Americano. Mi suegra me pidió que le hiciera pastelillos de chocolate con betún azul, yo decidí darles un toque algo diferente poniendoles estos baloncitos de football! Que les parece? Los baloncitos son de fondant y la receta de los cupcakes es la misma que utilicé para el cumple de mi hermano!

Banana bread w/nutella swirls

I have to admit I have a thing for Nutella, so do my kids!! So yesterday something possesed me to say I'm making banana nutella bread! And it was awesome a match made in heaven! Here is the recipe:
Ingredients:

21/3 cups of flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
11/2 cups mashed very ripe bananas (about 3 large 4 small)
6 tablespoons of butter room temp.
1/2 cup of granulated white sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs
1/2 cup of nutella

Preheat the oven at 350 F or 175 C. Grease a 9" loaf pan.
In a medium size bowl sift flour with baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In another bowl at high speed beat butter and sugar until creamy add bananas and vanilla until well combined about 2 minutes. Beat in eggs and reduce speed to low, beat in flour mixture. Spoon 1 third of your batter into the loaf pan and add a couple tablespoon of nutella and swirl with a knife, add another third of your batter and nutella and do the same! Finish up with your last little bit and put in the oven for 45 minutes or until a toothpick dipped in the midle comes out clean!
Listo!!

The Three Kings or Three Wise Men tradition in Mexico

The Three Kings, or The Three Wise Men as most of us know these characters are the three distinguished foreigners who visited baby Jesus shortly after his birth bearing gifts of gold, myrrh and frankincense. The tradition of the Three Wise Men bringing gifts to children was brought to Mexico by the Spanish "conquistadors", and now every year on the night of the 5th of January Mexican children leave a gift wish list letter in one of their shoes which they place under their Christmas tree. Or they release a helium filled balloon with their letter of gift wishes attached and go to sleep with the hope their presents from the Kings will await them under their Christmas tree the morning of January 6th.

But that is not all, this special day is more than wishing and gift receiving; families and friends gather to celebrate and share the traditional “Three Wise Men ring shaped roll”, which is a bread with sugar and dried fruits that are served along with hot chocolate. Hidden inside the ring of bread are three or more small figurines or baby Jesus mini sculptures, and each guest takes turns slicing the ring into serving portions. Whoever finds a figurine inside their bread slice has to organize a tamale party for the rest of the guests on the next February 2nd, which is the day of the Candelaria. The Three Wise Men day is a day to give and receive, to get together with those who you love, to begin the new year surrounded by our loved ones and see the day after with renewed spirits. It’s all about compromise and tradition, a celebration in memory of the Three Wise Men that followed the Star to Bethlehem.