Here's a Gluten-Free Lemon Fruit Flan in mini size! Individual lemon cakes topped with whipped cream and fresh fruit make a dessert that you'll want to make again and again.
Whenever I make more than one dessert for a family dinner and I ask, "Which one would you like?", the response from all of them is always the same: "Both!" I've learned that smaller desserts seem to work well for us, so we can be indulgent and try them both. I'm planning to make this mini gluten-free Lemon Fruit Flan this weekend, along with this Light Lemon Mousse.
I've made this flan as a full-size dessert many times and it always turns out. This Gluten Free Fruit Flan with Ricotta with berries is easy to customize and change with fruit in season. While I love a berry-topped flan, this time I chose colourful tropical fruit to top it off.
I used the same basic recipe for the cake part of this lemon fruit flan, but this time I doubled the recipe. I baked it on a 10 by 15-inch baking pan (which is the same size as a jelly roll pan, if you have one.) Once it was baked, I used a 3 ½-inch cookie cutter to cut 8 circles to form the bases for this mini fruit flan.
The best way to remove them from the parchment paper is to place a new sheet of paper on another baking sheet, lay it face down on top of the cake, then invert the pan. Carefully peel off the parchment paper on which the cake was baked.
Then it's easy to remove the extra cake from around the circles.
I transferred the mini cakes to individual serving plates and topped them with slightly sweetened whipped cream. I added mango, kiwi fruit, watermelon, and a sprig of fresh mint for garnish.
You can make the lemon cake part in advance, freeze the flan circles in an airtight container, and add the whipped cream and fruit just before serving. Keep it dairy-free by using whipped coconut milk instead. (Check this post for the secret to whipping coconut milk.)
So pretty! So good!
Mini Gluten Free Lemon Fruit Flan
Ingredients
- 4 eggs, separated
- 2 tbsp lemon zest
- ½ cup sugar, divided
- 1 ½ cups almond flour, finely ground
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp cream of tartar
- pinch sea salt
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 2 tbsp powdered sugar
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 kiwi fruit, peeled and sliced
- 1 mango, peeled and diced
- 1 cup watermelon cubes
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350°F. Line a 15 x 10-inch baking sheet with parchment paper. You will need three bowls: one large and two medium.
- Separate the eggs and put the whites in a medium bowl and the yolks in a large bowl.
- Add ¼ cup sugar and the lemon zest to the egg yolks and beat with an electric mixer.
- Combine the almond flour and baking powder in another medium bowl.
- Add the almond flour mixture to the egg yolk mixture and beat until smooth.
- With scrupulously clean beaters, beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and salt and continue beating. Add ¼ cup sugar, one spoonful at a time until soft peaks form.
- Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the batter, ½ cup at a time. It will seem like it won't combine, but as you add more it will come together and result in a light, airy batter. *If this just won't come together, just beat it with an electric mixer. It won't be quite as airy, but it will still be good!
- Carefully spread the batter on the baking pan, smoothing to the edges. Bake at 350°F for 17 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely on the pan.
- Meanwhile, whip the cream until frothy. Add the powdered sugar and vanilla extract and continue beating until soft peaks form. Refrigerate until you are ready to assemble the dessert. One cup of whipping cream should yield 2 cups of whipped cream.
- Use a cookie cutter to cut 8 circles from the cake. The easiest way to remove them from the parchment paper is to lay another clean sheet on top, invert the cake all at once, and carefully peel off the parchment paper on which it was baked.
- Carefully transfer to individual serving plates. Top with whipped cream and garnish with fresh fruit. Serve.
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