Vegan Flan
This easy vegan flan recipe creates a creamy, smooth flan that’s easier to make than a classic flan. If you’re looking for a smooth dessert with a creamy caramel topping, this will be your go-to favorite!
Grab your forks (or spoons) and take a bite (or several) of this eggless Flan recipe. It’s made with dairy-free eggnog and made even creamier with cashews.
This vegan flan is a real show stopper!
What is Flan?
The classic flan recipe is not vegan because it’s usually made with both cream and eggs. However, it’s surprisingly easy to make flan vegan. In fact, I venture to say it’s actually EASIER to make vegan flan recipes than regular flan!
This simple flan recipe sets quickly and can be ready to serve within an hour. All you have to do is prepare the ingredients on the stove-top, pour them into your flan pans and refrigerate.
Why This Recipe is a Winner
- Using soaked cashews creates a creamy base with a perfectly smooth mouthfeel
- Coconut sugar adds a caramel flavor to the flan
- Agar flakes make the perfect consistency without any added carbs.
What You Need
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
- Lemon — We’ll use both the zest and the juice of the lemon.
- Oats — I used rolled oats for this recipe, but you can substitute instant oats.
- Chia — We’ll add some ground chia seeds to create a thicker texture. You can use whole chia seeds; I just prefer ground because it creates a smoother finished texture.
- Syrup — I used maple syrup, but you can substitute agave nectar.
- Milk — We’ll use almond milk for the best overnight oats! Substitute your favorite plant-based milk.
- Yogurt — I love adding some plant-based yogurt (plain, unsweetened) for an even more tangy flavor.
- Protein Powder — I add some vanilla protein powder for increased flavor and nutrients. If your protein powder is not sweetened, you may want to add an extra teaspoon or two of sweetener.
- Cornstarch — We’ll use cornstarch to thicken the lemon curd topping.
- Turmeric — A pinch of turmeric makes that lemon curd sunny yellow.
- Raw cashew — You can find raw cashews at health food stores or online.
- Plant-based milk — Use your favorite plant-based milk, like soy milk, almond milk, or cashew milk. Use vegan eggnog to make it a seasonal holiday flan.
- Coconut Sugar – Use coconut sugar or substitute brown sugar.
- Agar flakes — You can find agar flakes at health food stores or online.
- Nutritional yeast flakes — We’ll add a bit of flavor with these yeast flakes.
- Ground nutmeg
- Rum
How to Make Vegan Flan
- Place soaked cashews in a food processor or high-speed blender. Pulse for a few seconds. Add the plant-based milk and pulse until smooth.
- Add the brown sugar, agar flakes, nutritional yeast flakes, and ground nutmeg. Pulse for a second or two to combine.
- Pour this into a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Remove from the heat. Stir in the rum. Set aside for 5 to 10 minutes, to allow it to cool slightly.
- Make the caramel topping by combining the ingredients in a separate saucepan and bringing it to a boil and reducing to a simmer. Cook until the sugar caramelizes and the sauce thickens, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour this evenly in the bottom of two flan dishes.
- Pour the cooled flan mixture over the caramel.
- Place in the fridge for at least one hour, preferably two.
- To serve, use a butter knife to cut along the sides of the pan. Invert it over a serving dish. It may take a minute or so, but the flan will drop onto the plate. Sprinkle with additional nutmeg (freshly grated is a nice touch).
Use almond milk to make this a soy-free flan.
How To Soak Cashews
Slow Soak Cashews
- Place cashews in a glass bowl and cover with water.
- Refrigerate and soak them for a minimum of four hours or up to overnight.
- Drain the soaking liquid.
Fast Soak Cashews
- Fast soak cashews by placing them in a saucepan.
- Cover them with water and then place it over medium heat.
- Bring it to a simmer (low boil) and cook for around 10 minutes. The cashews will become plump.
- Remove from heat and allow them to cool.
- Drain the soaking liquid.
Frequently-Asked Questions
Is Flan Vegan?
The classic flan recipe is not vegan because it’s usually made with both cream and eggs. However, it’s surprisingly easy to make flan vegan. In fact, I venture to say it’s actually EASIER to make vegan flan recipes than regular flan!
What is Flan?
A flan is basically a creamy custard dish with a caramel topping. It is usually a bit firmer than a standard pudding and is served on a plate where it stands firm with the caramel sauce dripping over the edge.
Does Vegan Flan Taste Like Flan?
Of course, the big question is does the non-dairy flan taste like, you know, a regular flan dessert? Well, if flan is creamy, rich, with hints of nutmeg and caramel, then this vegan flan is spot on!
Marly’s Tips
Use these expert tips to make this homemade flan recipe perfect every time:
- Experiment by adding a little more dried ginger to the mix. I love that stuff!
- Serve with vegan coconut whipped cream
- Sprinkle some crushed gingersnap cookies over the top
- You don’t need traditional flan dishes for this recipe, but they look nice.
More Vegan Desserts
If you’re into delicious vegan desserts, you’ll love these:
Have some fun! As long as you follow the basics of this easy flan recipe, you can adjust the spices and events sweetness level to meet your own tastes. That’s the best thing about making things from home — you know exactly what’s in your food and you get to adapt the flavors to meet your needs.
Because it’s made without dairy milk, this healthy flan recipe is delicious for people with allergies too.
That’s it for this vegan flan.
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Vegan Flan
Ingredients
Eggnog Flan
- ½ cup raw cashew pieces soaked or quick soak*
- 1 ½ cups plant-based milk
- 1 tablespoon coconut or brown sugar
- 1 ½ tablespoons agar flakes ** not powder
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon rum
Caramel Topping
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- ½ cup plant-based milk
Instructions
- Drain the soaked cashews from their soaking liquid. Discard liquid. Place soaked cashews in a food processor or high-speed blender. Pulse for a few seconds. Add the plant-based milk and pulse until smooth.
- Add the brown sugar, agar flakes, nutritional yeast flakes, and ground nutmeg. Pulse for a second or two to combine.
- Pour this into a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Remove from the heat. Stir in the rum. Set aside for 5 to 10 minutes, to allow it to cool slightly.
- In a separate saucepan add the caramel topping ingredients. Bring to a boil and reduce to a rapid simmer. Cook until the sugar caramelizes and the sauce thickens, 5 to 7 minutes. Pour this evenly in the bottom of two flan dishes.***
- Pour equal amounts of the slightly cooled flan mixture over the caramel.
- Place in the fridge for at least one hour, preferably two.
- To serve, use a butter knife to cut along the sides of the pan. Invert it over a serving dish. It may take a minute or so, but the flan will drop onto the plate. Sprinkle with additional nutmeg (freshly grated is a nice touch).
Recommended Equipment
(The products above contain sponsored links to products we use and recommend)
Notes
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This was a sponsored post. All opinions are my own. See our full disclosure for more information.
This post was originally published in 2016 and was updated to include new photos, new text, and an updated recipe in 2020.
Wow, something I’ve really missed since going Vegan is flan. I will be bookmarking this recipe. Thanks a lot for sharing it 🙂
Hi Justin — so glad you like this recipe!
Hey there excited to make this my cashews are almost done with soaking…before processing cashews will you process Nuts & water together or strain then process?
Hi Meagan! Great question! This is asking for just the soaked nuts (without the soaking liquid). I will add a note to clarify. Thanks again!
Duh… nevermind
Hi Tina. No problem! I added some emphasis to help it stand out. 🙂
Where’s the Carmel ingredients?
Can you skip the rum?
Hi Crystal. Sure, you can skip the rum. You can use something like vanilla-extract instead, but guess what? Vanilla extract is made with alcohol, like rum.
Any recommendations on the type/brand of rum to use? I don’t drink rum so I have no clue. Thanks.
We buy rum from Costco! The Kirkland brand is so good. But it’s a lot, so you might want to try a smaller bottle. You can’t go wrong with Bacardi or Captain Morgan.
When do we add the rum listed in the ingredients?
Hi Jill. Thanks for your comment. Add the rum after you remove the saucepan from the heat. I revised the instructions on that too.
I’ve been making the same thing but using coconut cream nog. So good!
Isn’t it the best stuff! I love a dessert that’s not overly heavy and this one fits the bill!