Serves 4
A far is a custardy pudding similar to a clafouti, but with a denser, almost quiche-like texture, common in Brittany. The prunes and Armagnac give it a sort of boozy, celebratory feel, perfect to round off an Easter lunch.
- 100ml milk
- 2 small eggs, beaten
- 35g caster sugar
- 35g butter, melted, plus some extra for greasing
- A few drops of good quality vanilla essence
- A pinch of salt
- 35g plain flour
- 90g stoned prunes, soaked in water for 4-5 hours
- 15g raisins, soaked in water for a couple of hours
- 50ml Armagnac or brandy
- Icing sugar for dusting
- Whisk the milk, eggs, caster sugar, flour, butter, vanilla and salt in a bowl to make a smooth batter then refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Put the prunes and raisins in a pan with the soaking liquid, bring to the boil and simmer for about 10 minutes until the fruit has softened,
- add the Armagnac and cook on a high heat until there is no liquid left. The Armagnac may ignite – don’t worry, the alcohol is just burning off and the flame will burn out.
- Transfer to a bowl and leave to cool.
- Pre-heat the oven to 200°C (390F)
- Butter a 20cm x 5cm deep cake tin, preferably non-stick and with a removable bottom, and place on a baking tray. If you haven’t got a non-stick one then butter and lightly flour a normal one, or you could use a non-stick frying pan that’s got an oven-proof handle.
- Give the batter a final whisk up and pour into the cake tin, then spoon in the prunes and raisins distributing them evenly.
- Bake for about 1 hour until the sides have puffed up and are golden, and a knife inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- If it’s colouring too much, turn the oven down or cover with foil.
- Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
- Carefully remove from the cake tin. If you haven’t got a removable-bottomed tin, invert the cake on to a plate then turn it on to a serving dish.
- Dust with icing sugar,
- Serve in slices with crème fraîche or more prunes in Armagnac or other boozy fruit left over from Christmas.