Crème Caramel

I got my first french cookbook; Paris Bistro Cooking by Linda Dannenberg. Had it for a while but never attempted any recipes until now. Only because I made something similar to this a while back. I know someone who could make an good flan. Similar to a Crème Caramel it has milk, eggs, and sugar and is cooked in a water dish. I'm looking forward to cooking more french dishes soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 Quart Milk

2 Vanilla Beans, Split Lengthwise, or 3 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract

2 Cups Sugar (divided)

3 Tablespoons Water

1 Drop Vinegar or lemon Juice

8 Large Eggs

Yolks of 4 Large Eggs

Small Pinch Salt

Directions:

In a larger saucepan over low heat, scald the milk with the vanilla beans. Remove from the heat, cover, and steep for 30 minutes. Then remove the vanilla beans and discard.

Caramelize an 8-cup mold; Place 1/2 cup of the sugar, the water, and vinegar or lemon juice in a small saucepan and cook over high heat until golden.

Carefully pour into the mold and tilt the mold to coat the bottom with caramel. let the caramel harden.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

Place the eggs, yolks, the 1 1/2 cups of sugar, and salt in a bowl; whisk together until the mixture thickens and is pale yellow. Strain the milk into the egg mixture and stir it to blend. Pour the custard mixture very carefully into the previously caramelized mold.

Place the mold in a larger pan, place the pan on the oven rack, and fill the pan with hot water to come halfway up the mold. Bake 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until the custard is set when a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool, then refrigerate. to serve, run a knife around the edge of the mold. Invert the mold onto a deep serving dish. the caramel will run out and fill the dish.