Flan (pie)

A flan, in British cuisine, is an egg-based dish with an open, rimmed pastry or sponge base containing a sweet or savoury filling. Examples are bacon and egg flan and custard tart.

History

Flan is recorded in Ancient Roman cuisine. It was often a savory dish, as in "eel flan"; sweet flans were also enjoyed.
In the Middle Ages, both sweet and savory flans were popular in Spain and across Europe, especially during Lent, when meat was forbidden.

Etymology

The English word "flan", and the earlier forms "flaune" and "flawn", come from the Old French flaon, in turn from the early Medieval Latin fladō, of Germanic origin, from an Indo-European root meaning "flat" or "broad".