Cocada Imperial (Imperial Coconut Flan)

This is a simple and traditional Mexican recipe for flan with coconut.

2 c Milk
3/4 c Granulated sugar
2 cups shredded coconut
1/2 cup coconut "water" (the raw juice from a coconut)
5 Small eggs, separated

Preheat the oven to 450F.

Place the sugar and milk in a saucepan and melt the sugar over low heat, then raise the heat and boil the mixture briskly. Take care that it does not boil over.
As soon as the mixture begins to thicken, stir it so that it does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
After about 30 minutes it should be the consistency of thin condensed milk and has been reduced to 1 cup.

Add the grated coconut to the coconut water and boil it for about 5 minutes, stirring it constantly.Add the "condensed" milk and continue cooking for another 5 minutes.
Set the mixture aside to cool.

Beat the egg yolks together until they are creamy and stir them well into the coconut mixture.
Beat the egg whites until they are frothy, add the salt and continue beating until they are stiff. Fold them into the mixture. Pour the mixture into the prepared mold. Cover the mold with a well-greased lid and place into a water bath.

Cook the flan on the lowest shelf of the oven for about 1 1/2 hours, then test to see if it is done.
When it is done, set it aside to cool.
Makes 6 servings.

To test to see if the flan is cooked through, insert the blade of a knife or a skewer well into the flan.
The knife should come out clean.
Take care not to pierce the flan at the bottom or it will spoil the appearance of the top when it is unmolded.