Frida Kahlo’s Wedding Flan

Of course flan was on the menu August 26, 1929, the day Frida Kahlo married Mexican muralist Diego Rivera. The fact that a special wedding cake had been ordered from the best bakery in Coyoacán didn’t matter: this classic custard no podía faltar to ensure the feast offered the best traditional Mexican fare, in keeping with Frida and Diego’s commitment to Mexicanidad, according to the cookbook and memoir Frida’s Fiestas: Recipes and Reminiscences of Life with Frida Kahlo, co-written by Guadalupe Rivera, Diego’s daughter, and Marie-Pierre Colle. 

Let’s Cook Like Frida in Honor of Her Art

We are celebrating favorite traditional Mexican dishes loved by Frida, in honor of her many exhibitions this year. One of the most famous and recognizable artists of all time, Frida Kahlo is extra everywhere right now. Thanks to a seven-city Immersive Frida Kahlo show, the Mexican painter’s work and larger-than-life vida are being celebrated in light, sound and immersive visuals in: Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, San Francisco and Toronto. For more information and tickets, visit https://www.immersive-frida.com.

And if you happen to live or be in the Chicago area, catch more Frida at the National Museum of Mexican Art. Home to one of the largest Mexican art collection in the United States, the museum is hosting two shows about the artista this year. The first is Surrounding Kahlo: Works from the Permanent Collection, March 5, 2022 to January 15, 2023. The second is Frida Kahlo, Her Photos, a powerful exhibition of her own photography, open April 1 through August 6, 2022. We plan to go to all three shows here at Familia Kitchen. And then come home and cook like her, beginning with Frida’s wedding flan.

This traditionally prepared custard capped off an authentic, hours-long Mexican feast prepared by cocineras specially brought in from the local market. El menu also included: oyster soup, white rice and plantains, huauzontles in green sauce, chiles stuffed with both cheese and picadillo, black mole from Oaxaca, and red pozole from Jalisco. All the while Frida sang with the wedding mariachis and rounds and rounds of tequila and pulque were raised to toast the famous couple.

Ready to Make the Flan Frida Served at her Wedding?

Frida Kahlo’s Wedding Flan

Recipe by Guadalupe Rivera, Frida’s Fiestas: Recipes and Reminiscences of Life with Frida Kahlo

5.0 from 2 votes

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings

6 to 8

servings

Prep time

5

minutes

Cooking time

2

hours 

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup sugar

• 1 quart milk

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 vanilla bean

• 4 egg yolks

• 6 eggs, lightly beaten

Directions

• Cook the sugar to caramelize it. (See note below for how-to information.)
• Once the sugar has turned liquid and golden brown, pour into an earthenware mold, turning it around so that the bottom and sides of the mold are covered with caramel.
• Heat the milk with the cup of sugar and the vanilla for about 10 minutes.
• Let cool slightly, then add the egg yolks and the beaten eggs. Mix thoroughly.
• Remove and discard the vanilla bean.
• Pour the mixture into the caramel-lined mold.
• Place the mold in a larger pan of hot water and bake in a preheated 350° oven for about 1 1/2 hours or until set.
• Cool completely before unmolding.

Notes

• For step-by-step directions to caramelizing the sugar, see My Mom’s Always-Requested Puerto Rican Flan.