Ingredients :

• Cornstarch (Maizena) — This is the central ingredient, the one that provides the structure. Maizena is the most common brand and it works very well — but any white cornstarch will do. Be careful not to confuse it with yellow cornmeal, which will give a grainy texture and a completely different taste. It should be white, fine, and impalpable between your fingers.
• Egg yolks — Two yolks only. They bring richness and that slight cream tint to the flan. Save the whites for a meringue — here they serve no purpose. Standard eggs are perfectly fine, no need to make it complicated.
• Liquid caramel — Store-bought is just fine. Don’t start making a homemade caramel if you’re a beginner — it adds unnecessary difficulty to this dessert. Any supermarket brand works. The goal here is the layer that flows over the top when unmolded.
• Vanilla extract — Liquid, not artificial powder with its plastic notes. A capful is enough. If you have a real pod lying around in a cupboard, scrape it and throw the pod into the milk while you heat it — you’ll smell the difference as soon as the saucepan starts to simmer.