Le Petit Marche

(Servings 6)

An exquisite combination of ingredients, this recipe is one any gourmet must try.  True to its French roots, the cream, butter, oil and egg in this dish make it very rich and yummy.
 
Corn Flan
Ingredients:
1 ½ lb fresh corn (weight after removing from cob; reserve ¼ pound corn, or about one ear, to mix with the crab salad)
4 medium shallots, finely chopped
3 eggs
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1½ cups heavy cream
½ tbsp tarragon, chopped 
½ tbsp chives, chopped 
¾ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
¼ cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated
 
Crab Salad
Ingredients:
½ lb jumbo lump crabmeat
 ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
 ½ tsp fish sauce
 ½ tsp Tabasco sauce
 ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
 3 tsp chives, chopped
 1 tsp tarragon, chopped
 ¼ lb corn (reserved from flan recipe)
 ½ jalapeño pepper, finely chopped
 Freshly cracked black pepper to taste
 
Method: Cook corn in a large pot of boiling water for 5-6 minutes. Remove corn from pot and place under cool running water to keep from overcooking. Once the corn is cool enough to handle, slice the kernels off the cob. In a large sauté pan with one tbsp of olive oil, cook onion over medium-low heat until just soft. Add the 1¼ pounds of corn and 1½ cups cream to the pan and bring to a boil and remove from heat. Puree the corn mixture in a food processor until very smooth. After pureeing, pass the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve before proceeding to remove the tough outer layer of the corn.
        Preheat the oven to 325° degrees and use 1 tbsp of butter to lightly coat the inside of 6 (1/2-cup) ramekins. Transfer the pureed corn mixture to a mixing bowl and whisk in the eggs, cheese, 1 tsp tarragon, chives, salt, and pepper. Divide the corn mixture evenly among the prepared ramekins and place ramekins in a large baking pan. Add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the pan, and bake uncovered until flans are set, about 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer the ramekins to a wire rack to cool slightly.
         While flans are cooking, in a mixing bowl whisk together the fish sauce, Tabasco, olive oil, lemon juice, chives, tarragon, jalapeño, and salt and pepper to taste. Add the crabmeat and reserved corn and toss gently but thoroughly to combine. Re-season if necessary.
        When the flans have cooled slightly, run the tip of a paring knife around the edge of each flan and turn flans out onto serving plates. Garnish each flan with some of the crabmeat mixture and serve immediately. Flans can be served hot, warm, or chilled.