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1
Warm 500 ml whole milk in a wide saucepan until it steams but does not simmer. Stir in 120 g caster sugar until dissolved, then add the marc de Bourgogne. Add 300 g torn day-old bread — brioche and pain de ménage in equal parts — and press it beneath the surface. Leave to soak for a full 30 minutes. The bread should absorb the milk completely and begin to collapse at the edges.
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2
Heat the oven to 170 °C. Butter an earthenware baking dish thoroughly.
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3
Work through the soaked bread with a fork, breaking it into an irregular, rough mass. Do not blend or process: the uneven texture is the character of the dish. The mixture should be cohesive but clearly fibrous, not smooth.
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4
Beat 4 eggs and fold them thoroughly into the bread mass. Add the lightly toasted broken walnuts and the blackcurrants. Fold once more until evenly distributed. This is the point at which the dish lives or dies: the eggs must be fully incorporated and the fruit and nuts suspended throughout — an uneven mix will bake to a stratified, dry result on one side and a wet pocket on the other.
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5
Pour and scrape the mixture into the prepared earthenware dish, spreading it level. Transfer to the centre of the oven and bake for 40–45 minutes. The surface should rise slightly and turn a deep, even gold. A knife inserted into the centre should emerge with a faint, custard-like cling — not clean, not liquid.
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6
Remove from the oven and allow to rest for at least 10 minutes before serving. The interior continues to set as it cools; it should remain custardy, not firm. Dust with powdered sugar and serve warm or at room temperature, with crème fraîche alongside.