Home > Recipes > Baking recipes > Far breton (French custard cake)

Far breton (French custard cake)

Name: Far breton (French custard cake)
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 60 min
Yield: Serves 4-6
Cuisine: French recipes
Ingredients: 50ml Somerset cider brandy, morello cherry brandy, calvados or lambig (see Easy Swaps); 50g prunes, roughly chopped; 120g plain flour; 80g caster sugar; ½ tsp fine salt; 3 medium eggs; 400ml whole milk; 1 tsp vanilla bean paste; 100g salted butter; Icing sugar to dust; Specialist kit; 20cm round tin

By: The Exploding Bakery

Published: 6 Mar 25
Updated: 17 Mar 25

Far Breton is a beloved pudding from Brittany, made of boozy prunes set in a rich custard. Oliver and Tom of the Exploding Bakery show you how to make it.

Oliver and Tom says: “The simple way this cake is put together makes it appear almost effortlessly chic. The simplicity seems to resonate with the serene countryside of Brittany. It’s similar to a clafoutis but more boozy; if you’re that way inclined you could use calvados or the lesser-known lambig (cider brandy from Brittany) in keeping with the French theme.”

Oliver Coysh and Tom Oxford started the Exploding Bakery in Exeter back in 2011, fuelled by their love of cake. If you’re not lucky enough to live in the Devon city and visit their café, you can order traybakes, letterbox brownies and more for delivery at explodingbakery.com. Their cakes are also available in London’s Fortnum & Mason, as well as cafés, delis and farmshops across the UK. See what they get up to on Instagram @explodingcafe

Recipe taken from Bake It Easy by Oliver Coysh and Tom Oxford (Quadrille £16.99) and tested by delicious.

Easy
March 2025

Test kitchen approved

Serves 4-6
Prep time 10 min. Cook time 50 min

Far Breton is a beloved pudding from Brittany, made of boozy prunes set in a rich custard. Oliver and Tom of the Exploding Bakery show you how to make it.

Recipe taken from Bake It Easy by Oliver Coysh and Tom Oxford (Quadrille £16.99) and tested by delicious.

Vegetarian

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 359kcals
Fat: 19g (11g saturated)
Protein: 8g
Carbohydrates: 34g (20g sugars)
Fibre: 1.2g
Salt: 0.9g

Save recipe

Save

Save recipe Print

Rate

Ingredients

50ml Somerset cider brandy, morello cherry brandy, calvados or lambig (see Easy Swaps)
50g prunes, roughly chopped
120g plain flour
80g caster sugar
½ tsp fine salt
3 medium eggs
400ml whole milk
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
100g salted butter
Icing sugar to dust

Specialist kit

20cm round tin

Cook Mode Sticky screen? No thanks! Tap to prevent your screen from going off while cooking.

Method

Warm the brandy in a small pan, then pour it over the prunes in a small bowl. Leave to soak while you prepare the cake batter.
Heat the oven to 200°C/ 180°C fan/gas 6 and line your tin with a piece of scrunched-up-then-flattened-out-again baking paper (this lets the paper mould to the tin more easily). Sift the flour into a mixing bowl, then
add the caster sugar and salt. Crack in the eggs and gently whisk to combine it all.
Heat the milk and vanilla in a saucepan over a medium heat. Make sure it doesn’t boil, then add the butter and stir to combine. Once the butter has melted, remove from the heat and leave to cool a little. Slowly pour into the mixture in the mixing bowl, whisking slowly until you have a smooth batter Strain the prunes well, then gently fold into the mixture.

Pour into your lined tin and bake for around 40-45 minutes until caramelised on top and set in the middle – a toothpick pushed in should come out clean. Leave to cool completely, then dust with icing sugar to serve.