Chocoflan (Impossible Cake) Recipe
Have your flan and cake too! This Chocoflan (Impossible Cake) layers a rich, chocolate cake with a hint of orange and a silky vanilla-coffee flan. Once flipped, it’s drizzled with warm dulce de leche and sprinkled with crunchy walnuts — a decadent, magical dessert that’s perfect for any celebration.
Servings: 10 servings
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake:
- 2 sticks butter or 1/2 lb
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 eggs room temperature
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 4 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup orange juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Flan:
- 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
- 14 onces whole milk measure it out in the sweetened condensed milk can
- 3 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch instant coffee
Dulce de Leche Glaze:
- 1 cup dulce de leche
- milk regular milk or almond milk, as needed
- chopped pecans or walnuts optional
Instructions
Chocolate Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In an electric mixer blend the butter with the sugar until it’s light and fluffy, almost white. Whisk in the eggs, one at time until incorporated.
- Sift together flour and baking powder and then slowly add this to the creamed sugar. Once the flour has been added, stir in the cocoa powder.
- Next mix in the orange juice and vanilla. Once it’s well combined, pour the cake batter into a well-greased cake pan.
Flan:
- In a blender, add all the ingredients and blend well. Pour this mixture on top of the cake batter, very carefully so you don’t disturb the cake batter.
Bake:
- Place a larger cake pan or baking dish in the oven and fill it with about 1 inch of water. Then place the chocoflan pan in the water bath (bain-marie or bano de maria). Let the cake bake for about 75 to 90 minutes or until the cake is done.
- Let the cake cool for about an hour. Then when you are ready to flip the chocoflan, pour some hot water into the larger pan and set the chocoflan pan in the hot water for about 30 seconds.
Dulce de Leche Glaze:
- Pour dulce de leche or cajeta in a small sauce pan on low heat. Stir in milk slowly to desired constancy.
Serve:
- Flip the chocoflan onto a cake plate and serve. This cake holds well in the frig for several days.
- Drizzle with caramel (dulce de leche or cajeta) and sprinkle with nuts, if using.
- Serve warm or chilled.
Notes
- Use a 12-cup bundt pan for this recipe — anything smaller and it could overflow.
- I recommend buttering the pan by hand instead of using baking spray for the best release.
- When creating the water bath, add just 1 inch of hot water to the outer pan. If water gets into the bundt pan, it can ruin the flan's texture.
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Time-saving tip: Use a squeeze bottle of dulce de leche and drizzle it directly into the pan before adding the batters.
Or, skip the caramel layer during baking and pour a warm dulce de leche glaze over the cake after it’s baked and inverted. - Store covered in the fridge for up to 4 days. This dessert actually tastes better the next day!
- Do not freeze or reheat — enjoy chilled or at room temperature for the best texture.
Nutrition
Calories: 386kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 163mg | Sodium: 207mg | Potassium: 158mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 743IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 48mg | Iron: 2mg