Bumbleberry Vanilla Flan

Bumbleberry Vanilla Flan. This dessert is so easy to make but so impressive to serve. It’s a great way to use surplus berries in your fridge or freezer too!

Bumbleberry Vanilla Flan

Originally published January, 2015.

I know that a sour cream flan sounds like sort of a strange dessert. But trust me, it really does work deliciously well with many fruit toppings.

This is a recipe that I have been making with a number of fruit toppings for many years. Several versions can be found on this website.

It really is such an easy dessert to make and you really do get great results for very little effort.

Blueberry Sour Cream Flan

One fan of the Blueberry version of this recipe wrote.

“You are amazing. I never thought a dessert that was so easy to make would be so delicious!!! If you need an easy but elegant and impressive dessert, this is it!”

That comment certainly qualifies as a ringing endorsement.

Frozen berries are fine in this Bumbleberry Vanilla Flan.

In planning a dessert for a few friends who were dropping by for “Sips and Nibbles” this past weekend, I wanted to try a bit of a different version. Yet again and this time a mix of frozen berries caught my eye as the inspiration.

Bumbleberry Vanilla Flan

Fresh berries are terribly expensive at this time of year, especially here in Newfoundland. Nevertheless, I set out to bring a well needed taste of summer to this dessert using more readily available frozen berries.

This mix had blueberries, blackberries, strawberries and raspberries which made for a great flavour combination. Just don’t rapidly boil the fruit topping so that you lose the shape of the berries.

Store bought bags of mixed berries are ideal for this recipe.

They taste fresher and present better if only gently boiled when making the fruit topping.

There’s plenty of delicious, fragrant vanilla flavour in the sour cream custard, for sure.  I carried that forward by using a vanilla wafer crumb base instead of the graham crumb base that I usually do.

That idea worked particularly well in this recipe. I often recommend this recipes as an easier and slightly lighter alternative to cheesecake at the end of a great meal.

If you are looking for something in the cheesecake line though, we’ve put together an amazing collection of 40 of our Best Cheesecake Recipes.

Like this Bumbleberry Vanilla Flan recipe?

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Bumbleberry Vanilla Flan

Yield: 12 servings or more

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes

Bumbleberry Vanilla Flan - one of the easiest and most luscious dessert recipes ever! Just a few simple ingredients come together to form this creamy, slightly tangy, baked custard on a vanilla crumb base and topped with a delicious bumbleberry compote. The basic recipe can be used with practically any fruit topping of your choice.

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Ingredients

FOR THE VANILLA COOKIE CRUMB CRUST

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• 1¼ cups vanilla cookie crumbs, I used Nilla Wafers
• ¼ cup melted butter
• 2 tbsp sugar

FOR THE FLAN LAYER

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• 3 cups full fat sour cream,
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 3 tsp vanilla extract

FOR THE BUMBLEBERRY COMPOTE

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• 2 cups mixed summer berries, fresh or frozen
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest, optional
• 1 rounded tablespoon corn starch
• ¼ cup water

Instructions

1. Grease the bottom of a 9 inch springform pan or better, line it with parchment paper.
2. Mix together the vanilla cookie crumbs, melted butter, and 2 tbsp sugar until well combined.
3. Press into the bottom of the greased or parchment lined springform pan.
4. For the custard part of this dessert it is important to use full fat sour cream or the filling will not set. I use 18% milk fat sour cream that is sometimes sold as “restaurant style” or “extra thick”.
5. Whisk together the sour cream, 1 cup sugar, eggs and vanilla until the sugar is dissolved.
6. Pour onto the prepared graham crumb crust and bake at 300 degrees F for about an hour. May need up to 10 minutes more depending on your oven. The custard will still be quite jiggly at the center when done and may be just beginning to brown slightly at the edges, although no color at all is necessary for the flan to be properly baked.
7. Allow the flan to cool to room temperature then refrigerate for a couple of hours before topping with bumbleberry topping.
8. TO PREPARE THE BUMBLEBERRY COMPOTE
9. Bring the berries and sugar to a very gentle boil. (plus the lemon zest if you are using it.)
10. Mix the corn starch with the water and add slowly to the boiling berry mixture stirring constantly. Boil gently for 1 additional minute stirring constantly. Cool and pour over the cooled flan. Refrigerate for 2 - 3 hours before serving.

Recommended Products

Rock Recipes a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Our product recommendations are almost exclusively for those we currently use or have used in the past.

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  Rock Recipes: The Best Food From My Newfoundland Kitchen
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  Wilton Excelle Elite 9-Inch Springform Pan
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  Measuring Spoons: U-Taste 18/8 Stainless Steel Measuring Spoons Set of-7 Piece: 1/8 tsp, 1/4 tsp, 1/2 tsp, 3/4 tsp, 1 tsp, 1/2 tbsp & 1 tbsp Dry and Liquid Ingredients

Nutrition Information

Yield

12

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 337Total Fat 18gSaturated Fat 9gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 91mgSodium 110mgCarbohydrates 41gFiber 1gSugar 34gProtein 4g

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