The balanced everyday bake. A splash of cream for body and a real vanilla pod for depth, without tipping into excess. Reliable, versatile, and the one we would actually make on a Tuesday.
SERVES 6ACTIVE 30 minTOTAL 5 hr incl. chillLEVEL Medium
Ingredients
FOR THE CARAMEL
caster sugar120g
water2 tbsp
FOR THE CUSTARD
large eggs5
whole milk500ml
double cream100ml
vanilla pod, split1
caster sugar100g
Method
Make the caramel
Heat the sugar and water without stirring until deep amber. Pour into a 20cm round dish or 6 ramekins and tilt to coat. Leave to set.
Infuse the dairy
Warm the milk and cream with the split vanilla pod and its seeds until steaming. Off the heat, let it sit 10 minutes to infuse, then remove the pod.
Mix the custard
Whisk the eggs and sugar until just combined. Pour in the warm infused dairy slowly, whisking, then strain through a fine sieve.
Fill and bake
Pour over the caramel. Bake in a water bath at 160C / 325F / gas 3 for 45 minutes, until set with a gentle wobble at the centre.
Chill and turn out
Cool to room temperature, then chill at least 4 hours, ideally overnight. Loosen the edge and invert onto a lipped plate to catch the caramel.
Lab notes
Tip: Overnight chilling is where Sonnet earns its reputation. Do not rush the set.
# Flan Management - Starting from v1.0.0
# 2026-05-20: Baseline custard. Solid but plain. v1.0.0
# 2026-05-27: Added cream for body. v1.1.0
# 2026-06-04: Deprecated extract, swapped to vanilla pod. v2.0.0
# 2026-06-08: Tuned bake time, reduced weeping. v2.1.0