Flan (pie)


A flan, in English and other cuisines, is a dish with an open, rimmed pastry or sponge base containing a sweet or savory filling; examples are quiche lorraine, custard tart, and the South African melktert.

History

Flan is known in 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 very popular in 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 fladōn-em, derived from the Old High German flado, a sort of flat cake, probably from an Indo-European root for "flat" or "broad".