French · Authentic-ish French
Far Breton
174 kcal a serving, against 283 for the traditional version. That is 109 kcal off, or 39%, with 8.4g of protein. Serves 8. 1 hour, plus cooling time.
What the traditional version is
A heavy, incredibly sweet batter made from whole milk, heaps of sugar, whole eggs and plain flour. It gets poured over a thick layer of dried prunes in a baking dish heavily greased with salted butter. As it bakes for nearly an hour, the batter sets into a dense, rubbery custard that tastes intensely of vanilla and caramelised sugar, while the prunes plump up and turn into little pockets of sticky syrup.
What changed, and what each change costs
Whole milk and butter for semi-skimmed milk and fat-free Greek yoghurt
A traditional batter relies heavily on melted butter and whole milk for its rich, heavy texture. I strip out the butter entirely and replace a large chunk of the milk with thick Greek yoghurt. This keeps the custard dense and satisfying without carrying a massive load of animal fat.
What it costs you. The mouthfeel is slightly less luxurious. You lose that distinct, crispy buttery edge around the crust where the batter meets the hot baking dish.
4 whole eggs down to 2, bolstered with egg whites
Egg yolks are brilliant for richness and colour, but they bring a lot of fat to a dish that already has plenty. I keep 2 whole eggs for flavour, then use pure egg whites to provide the structure that binds the flour and milk together into a sliceable pudding.
What it costs you. The final pudding is slightly paler and noticeably less rich. It sets a fraction firmer than the original, losing a bit of that silky custard wobble.
100g of sugar down to 50g
Prunes are essentially giant bags of natural sugar anyway. Halving the added sugar in the batter stops the pudding from being cloying and lets the dark, sticky fruit do the heavy lifting for sweetness.
What it costs you. A much more subdued dessert, then. Not a blast of pure sugar, and I'm not going to pretend otherwise. If you have a raging sweet tooth, you'll definitely notice the difference.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 283 | 174 |
| Protein | 7.3g | 8.4g |
| Fat | 9.7g | 2.2g |
| Saturated fat | 5.1g | 0.9g |
| Carbohydrate | 43.2g | 30.7g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 2.6g | 4.8g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish French prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. gluten, eggs, milk.
The method is in the book
This is a dense, incredibly satisfying slab of pudding that works perfectly alongside a cup of strong black coffee. The prunes are sticky, dark and intensely sweet, contrasting brilliantly with the slightly tangy, firm custard. It lacks the heavy, buttery slick of a genuine Breton version, and I will readily admit the original tastes far more decadent. However, this version won't leave you feeling totally sluggish. You get a massive slice of proper French baking that fits perfectly into a normal Tuesday afternoon.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish French, along with 54 more. Buy the paperback