Recipe: Cannelés

Total time: 1 hour, 15 minutes, plus 24 hours chilling

Servings: About 27

Note: From Nick Malgieri

2 1/4 cups sugar

1 2/3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

3 eggs

2 egg yolks

5 tablespoons dark rum

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups water

1/4 cup ( 1/2 stick) butter

1/2 cup nonfat dry milk

1. The day before you intend to bake the cannelés, make the batter: Combine the sugar and flour in a large mixing bowl and whisk to mix evenly. Whisk in the condensed milk, eggs, yolks, rum and vanilla.

2. Combine the water, butter and dry milk in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over low heat, whisking occasionally. Whisk the hot mixture into the flour and egg mixture until thoroughly combined. Pass the batter through a fine-meshed strainer into a container; let cool slightly, then cover tightly and refrigerate a minimum of 24 hours, a maximum of 5 days.

3. When you are ready to bake the cannelés, heat the oven to 400 degrees.

4. Remove the batter from the refrigerator and whisk to combine, 1 minute. Fill cannelé molds 3/4 full. (If using silicone molds, do not grease; tins should be lightly coated with oil.)

5. Bake until the cannelés are firm and very dark brown, about 1 hour, changing the position of the pans several times -- back to front and top to bottom during baking. Let sit 5 minutes, then invert onto a rack. Gently pull the sides of the silicone mold out to release the cannelés onto a rack. Serve warm.

Each serving: 176 calories; 34 mg. sodium; 49 mg. cholesterol; 4 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 31 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams protein; 0 fiber.