Far breton
Photo: Arnaud 25 · CC BY-SA 4.0

History

Far comes from the Latin for flour, and the original was a savoury porridge cooked in a cloth alongside meat, still made in western Brittany as kig ha farz. The sweet baked version, thickened with wheat flour, eggs and milk, is the one that spread across the region and became a household dessert. Prunes are the classic addition in the Finistère version, raisins in others, and purists in some quarters insist on neither. What all versions share is the texture: much denser than a clafoutis, sliceable, better on the second day, and served in squares at room temperature rather than warm from the oven.

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Common allergens: Gluten, Eggs, Dairy

Make it at home

Yield 8Hands-on 20 minTotal 2 hrDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 250g pitted prunes
  • 80ml dark rum
  • 200g plain flour
  • 150g caster sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 litre whole milk
  • A pinch of salt
  • 40g salted butter for the dish
  • 1 vanilla pod or 1 tsp vanilla extract

Method

  1. Soak the prunes in the rum with a splash of hot water for at least an hour, longer if you can.
  2. Whisk the flour, sugar and salt, then beat in the eggs one at a time to a thick paste with no lumps.
  3. Slacken with the milk in a thin stream, whisking constantly, and add the vanilla. The batter should be very loose.
  4. Butter a deep 25cm dish generously and scatter in the drained prunes.
  5. Pour the batter over and bake at 190C for 50 to 60 minutes until puffed, deeply browned on top and only just set in the middle.
  6. Cool completely in the dish. It will sink and firm up. Cut into squares and serve at room temperature.

Tip from the editors. Resist eating it hot. Far breton needs several hours to set into the dense, sliceable texture that distinguishes it from a clafoutis.

Where to eat far breton

Far breton in Rennes

Le Fournil des Halles ★ 4.1

€ BakeryBreton family baking across three generationsCentreWalk-in only

Le Fournil des Halles bakes a three-generation kouign-amann recipe near the Halles Centrales in Rennes, alongside far breton and buckwheat galettes.

Worth the queueKouign-amann, plain or apple

TipTheir kouign-amann is sold in packaging that keeps it three weeks, the one Breton pastry that survives a suitcase.

Directions

Pâtisserie 16h30 ★ 4.5

€€ BakeryPâtisserie and tea salon from local, organic producersThaborWalk-in only

Pâtisserie 16h30 is Marion Juhel's bakery and tea salon on Rue Hoche in Rennes, Gault&Millau's Grand Ouest pastry trophy winner in 2020, closed Mondays.

Worth the queueKouign-amann in Froment du Léon butter from Pacé

TipThe kouign-amann is folded with Beurre de Madame from Pacé, churned from Froment du Léon milk; it sells out on weekend afternoons.

Directions

Boulangerie Hoche ★ 4.2

€ BakeryClassic boulangerie with Breton viennoiserieThaborWalk-in only

Boulangerie Hoche bakes one of Rennes' benchmark kouign-amann at 17 Rue Hoche, and its pastry team has riffed the galette-saucisse into a tribute cake.

Worth the queueKouign-amann

TipRue Hoche holds this bakery, 16h30 and the Nabuchodonosor in one block; come hungry and compare kouign-amann.

Directions

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