Serves 12

Roasted pumpkin puree

1 native sugar pumpkin, about 5 pounds

1 cup light brown sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon ground nutmeg

1 tablespoon allspice berries

1. Set the oven at 400 degrees.

2. Take the pumpkin and cut off the stem. Slice the pumpkin down the middle, through its equator. Take a spoon and gently remove all the seeds. Cut the hemispheres into halves. You should now have 4 pieces.

3. Take the brown sugar and smother the inside of the pumpkin with it. Proceed to sprinkle the cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice between each pumpkin piece. Place the pumpkin pieces in a large baking pan. The pumpkin flesh must be facing up while the skin sits on the pan. Wrap the pan in aluminum foil.

4. Bake the pumpkins for about 90 minutes or until the flesh pierces smoothly with a knife. Remove the foil and allow to cool.

5. Remove the flesh from the skin slowly. The skin should come right off when properly roasted. Place the pumpkin flesh into a blender or food processor and puree until you achieve a smooth pumpkin puree. You can use 15 ounces of this to make the flan.

Flan

1 cup sugar

5 eggs, whole

5 egg yolks

5 ounces cream cheese

1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk

12 ounces evaporated milk

12 ounces milk

15 ounces pumpkin puree

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Pinch of ground allspice

¼ teaspoon almond extract

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

¼ teaspoon salt

1. In a small pot place the sugar with ¼ cup of water and caramelize your sugar. Pour into a round 10-inch cake mold and set aside.

2. Set the oven to 300 degrees.

3. In a blender mix the remaining ingredients and blend until thoroughly combined.

4. Pour flan base over set caramel.

5. Place the pan inside a larger pan. Fill the outside pan with water so that it is just under the level of the flan. Cover the entire pan with aluminum foil. This water bath helps bake the flan slowly as to not overcook the eggs.

6. Bake for up to 1 hour, or until the flan has set. Allow flan to set in the fridge before turning over and serving. Adapted from Robert Gonzalez