Bear Leche Flan Recipe (with Video)

Prep:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F/177°C.
2. Have baking dish ready for caramel! I used two 5-inch circular ramekins, but you can also use a 9-inch baking dish/pan or something similar. Just make sure that you are able to cut out big enough circles to create the bear shape after baking! See notes at bottom for more details.
For the caramel:
1. In a saucepan, add 1 cup of sugar and cook over low-medium heat. Do not stir the sugar, but do occasionally swirl the pan while cooking until all of the sugar dissolves.
2. Once fully dissolved and the liquid is golden, pour caramel into the baking dishes, evenly covering the bottom. You can tilt the baking dishes to distribute the caramel around. Try to not make the layer too thick.
For the flan:
1. While the caramel hardens, work on the flan. In a medium mixing bowl, add egg yolks, condensed milk, and vanilla. Whisk together until fully combined.
2. Slowly add evaporated milk while whisking.
3. To make extra smooth flan, strain the mixture by pouring it into another container through a fine mesh sieve.
4. Pour flan mixture into baking dishes with the hardened caramel. Place baking dishes into a larger roasting pan. Pour water into roasting pan so that the baking dishes are sitting in at least 2 inches of water. Cover the baking dishes with aluminum foil.
5. Place roasting pan with covered flan into the preheated oven. Depending on the size of your baking dish, baking time may vary from 30-60 minutes.
6. At the 45-minute mark, check if the flan is done: the center should still jiggle slightly, but the top should feel a bit firm to the touch. Stick a cake tester or toothpick in the middle of the flan. If it comes out clean, it can be removed from the oven. If not, check flan every 5-10 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and take baking dishes out of the roasting pan, placing them on a cooling rack. Allow to cool until room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 3 hours.
8. Run knife around the edges of the flan to loosen it, then invert the dish onto a rimmed tray (to catch the extra caramel) lined with parchment paper.
9. Use 4-inch cookie cutter to cut out the bear's head, then use the 1.5-inch cookie cutter to cut out two ears. Place the head and ears onto your serving dish.
To decorate
1. Melt white and milk/dark chocolate and pour into their own piping bags. Snip a small opening off the piping bags and use the white to make the snout, then the inner ears. Use the milk/dark chocolate to add the nose, mouth, and eyes.
Notes
1. You can really make this in any baking dish that will fit the flan mixture, which is about 3 cups of liquid. Just make sure you are able to cut out one large circle and two smaller circles to be able to make the bear.
2. You can eat the scraps or blend them to make a leche flan cream for other desserts.