Broyé de Poitou
Prep Time 15 minutes 
Cook Time 30 minutes 
Total Time 45 minutes 
Servings 8Ingredients
- 250 gr plain flour
- 125 gr caster sugar
- 125 gr unsalted butter softened and cubed
- 1 egg
- 1 pinch salt
- 8 gr vanilla sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 egg yolk, for egg wash
Equipment
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven
- Preheat your oven to 180°C (fan 160°C).
2. Prepare the dough
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, vanilla sugar, and salt. Add the softened butter, cut into small pieces, and the whole egg. Mix well with your hands until you have a firm, homogenous dough.
3. Shape the broyer
- Roll out the dough on a sheet of parchment paper to form a large, round galette, about 1.5–2 cm thick. Use your fingers to pinch the edges all around, creating a decorative border. Use a knife to make shallow decorative lines or a simple pattern on the surface (this is called scoring!).
4. Add the egg wash
- Lightly beat the egg yolk with a splash of water and brush it over the top of the galette for a golden finish.
5. Bake
- Slide the parchment paper with the galette onto a baking tray. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the broyé is golden and crisp around the edges.
6. Serve with tea or coffee
- Let the Broyé de Poitou cool for a few minutes, brew yourself a cup of tea or coffee and enjoy the true taste of French country life!
Notes
- Storage: Broyé du Poitou keeps well in an airtight container for several days.
- Texture: The broyé should be crumbly, buttery, and slightly crisp at the edges.
About this recipe
I first came across Broyé de Poitou in a bakery in the central-west of France. I was going in to buy bread and I noticed these big flat round biscuits stacked up in the display. Obviously, I had to ask. The baker told me it was the traditional French butter cookie of the region and that you had to punch it rather than slice it. I bought one immediately. At home I made an espresso, punched my biscuit it into pieces and tried it. He was right. It was the perfect thing for an afternoon pick-me-up.
Where Broyé de Poitou comes from
Broyé de Poitou comes from the heart of Poitevin region and has been a symbol of conviviality and family tradition there for a very long time. This large, round, golden french shortbread biscuit recipe hasn’t changed in over a hundred years. It’s crumbly and sandy and it melts on your tongue with that pure butter-and-flour taste that makes simple biscuits completely addictive.
The origins go back to the rural farms of Poitou, where it was baked in communal ovens and brought out for special occasions. Weddings, baptisms, harvest festivals, communions. The recipe was passed down through families, generation after generation. The ingredients are simple, just flour, sugar, French butter, and eggs. The resourcefulness of Poitevin families wasn’t in the ingredients, it was in what they did with them. And what they did has outlasted every food trend for a century.
The famous punch
The act of breaking the Broyé de Poitou is central to its identity, and it’s what surprised me and makes people stop and stare the first time they see it. The name comes from the French verb broyer, meaning to crush. Traditionally the French butter cookie is placed on the table and broken with a single, decisive punch to the centre. Everyone reaches in and takes a piece. So you don’t need any plates, no slicing, and no ceremony beyond the thump itself. It’s completely brilliant!
The punch is democratic and social. The reason it is done is so that everyone gets a share, and the whole thing becomes a moment. If you make this for people who haven’t seen it before, don’t warn them. Just put it on the table and ask anyone to punch it! The reaction is worth it every time.
What makes a good Broyé de Poitou
The texture is everything here. A proper broyé de Poitou is crumbly and sandy, with crisp caramelised edges and a centre that stays just slightly tender. It should melt as soon as it hits your tongue rather than requiring any real chewing. That effect comes from working the butter in properly and not overworking the dough once it comes together. Mix until it’s homogenous, and then stop.
The scoring on top is traditional. Use a knife to make a simple crosshatch or geometric pattern before the egg wash goes on. It crisps up beautifully in the oven and gives you that golden, almost glazed surface that makes this French butter cookie look as good as it taste.
This French shortbread biscuit recipe is about as straightforward as baking gets. Fifteen minutes to make the dough, thirty minutes in the oven, and you have something that tastes like it came from an artisan baker in Poitiers.
On what to bake the Broyé de Poitou
A good sturdy baking tray heats evenly, and when you pair it with my favourite baking mat (that I use for literlly everything in French baking), you get a French shortbread biscuit that lifts cleanly, with a perfectly baked crispy base.
The tradition today
The Broyé de Poitou is still a staple at Poitevin tables and still made by artisan producers in the region. Goulibeur in Poitiers is the most well-known, using local butter and the same recipe that local families have been making at home for generations. You can find it in local markets and biscuit shops across Poitou, usually wrapped simply and stacked in piles.
Like I said, baking it at home is super easy and worth doing to share it with people who never heard of it. It keeps well in an airtight container for several days, which means it’s a brilliant make-ahead for gatherings. Brew a coffee, put it on the table, and let someone else do the punching.
Share your feedback and spread the love!
If you try this recipe, I’d love to hear how it turns out! Leave a ★★★★★ rating and your thoughts in the comments, it helps fellow French foodies discover this recipe too. Snap a photo and tag @obviously.french on Instagram. Come talk about it in our Facebook group. And don’t forget to save this recipe to Pinterest so you’ll always have it handy for your next French-inspired meal!
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