Clafouti French Dessert

Clafouti, French dessert. Clafouti is known as the French version of flan or custard in some other countries. Flour, eggs, and milk are the primary ingredients for this baked sweet treat. Enjoy this French dessert recipe on your next night off from cooking! Clafouti is a really easy dessert to make. Little old me didn’t know how to cook at all, so when I found out that clafouti is one of the easiest desserts around I just had to give it a try.

📖 WHAT IS CLAFOUTIS

Traditionally baked in a pie dish or cast-iron skillet, clafoutis is a baked French dessert that includes some type of fruit (cherries most frequently) and a flan-like batter made with milk, egg, cream, and flour. Warm clafoutis is often served with milk or powdered sugar on top.

The Clafoutis is a French dessert that originated in the Limousin region and is now seen in a lot of upscale restaurants all throughout France.

My recipe follows the same guidelines as the clafoutis sweets I encountered in France, which have a texture that is more custard-like and almost flan-like and contain very little flour and no baking powder. However, I advise adding more flour and baking powder if you want your clafoutis to be fluffier.

What fruit should I use?

Clafoutis is incredibly adaptable, and you can create it with a wide variety of fruits—cherry, sour cherry, plum, apricot, blackberry, peach, and the list goes on—to name a few. Make sure the sugar is adjusted to the fruit.

🌟 WHY THIS IS THE BEST RECIPE

1. It is sooooo easy – As fancy as clafoutis sounds making this French dessert is extremely easy. It literally whips up just like a pancake! Seriously, this is the easiest recipe I will probably ever make on this blog
2. It is very quick – All you need is to whisk the ingredients and bake!
3. It is super delicious – I never compromise on taste! This clafoutis recipe is the perfect dessert with a silky custard-like texture, deep vanilla notes, and lovely cherries in each bite! Absolutely irresistible!

📝 INGREDIENT NOTES

1. Flour: All purpose flour works absolutely well in this recipe.
2. Almond flour: You can either purchase these flours or pulse bland roasted almond with the flour until it becomes a powder-like texture
3. Salt: An essential ingredient in most dessert recipes. Balances flavor and enhances other ingredients
4. Sugar: The recipe is made with a small amount of granulated sugar. Feel free to adjust the quantity depending on the sweetness of the cherries.
5. Egg: Clafoutis is sort of an eggy custardy dessert so the egg has a key function in this recipe. Use it at room temperature
6. Milk: I suggest using whole milk in all my recipes at room temperature
7. Heavy cream: Also known as whipping cream or double cream. The recipe is made with half cream – half milk for extra creaminess. I suggest using 36% fat content good quality cream at room temperature
8. Vanilla extract: Vanilla is the key flavoring in this recipe, use good quality pure vanilla, I actually prefer vanilla bean paste. There are several great brands for fine, pure vanilla, I use Nielsen massey which I love and really recommend
9. Cherry: I used frozen sour cherries, but the good news is that any fresh or frozen cherry can work. If using frozen, make sure you use a paper kitchen towel and carefully soak most of the unnecessary liquid out of the fruits before using so it won´t make the dessert too wet

👩‍🍳 HOW TO MAKE THIS RECIPE

1. THE PROCESS OF MAKING THE CLAFOUTIS BATTER

Although using a food processor to combine all the ingredients (except the cherry) is the simplest way, if you don’t have one I recommend the following:

• Use a hand whisk to quickly beat the eggs, cream, milk, and sugar for a minute at room temperature.
• Add vanilla essence and the dry ingredients (flour, salt, and almond flour).

I guess that’s it! Making waffles is as simple as this clafoutis recipe!

💡 Top Tip: Use room temperature ingredients for the best emulsification

2. HOW TO BAKE

The meal should be baked in three stages, but first, preheat your oven for 15 minutes. Make sure to buy a cheap digital oven thermometer, especially if you notice that your oven doesn’t always function properly.

• Generously butter a Pie dish 9 inch / 23 cm
• Pour ¼ of the clafoutis batter into the pan and prebake for 8 minutes
• Arrange the cherries around, pour the rest of the batter over the cherries and bake for 20 minutes.
• Hint with a small amount of brown sugar and bake for further 12 minutes.

Why so many steps, though? In order to properly position the cherries on top and prevent all of them from falling to the bottom of the pan, I like to pre-bake one-fourth of the batter first. You can skip this step if you’d like.

Due to the egg, the clafoutis will bubble up and turn golden brown on top.

💡 Top Tip: Do not overbake your cherry clafoutis! The inside should stay creamy, custard-like, you will love it!

How To Make Fruit Clafoutis

YIELDMakes 6 to 8 servingsShow Nutrition

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 12 ounces fresh fruit, such as cherries, berries, or stone fruit
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• Powdered sugar, for serving (optional)

EQUIPMENT

• Measuring cups and spoons
• 10-inch cast iron skillet
• Cherry pitter (optional)
• Blender

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Butter the pan and preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place a rack in the center of the oven. Butter a 10-inch cast iron skillet and place it aside.
2. Get the fruit ready:
3. Cherry pitting and stem removal are required. Pitted cherries, raspberries, fresh figs, and strawberries can all be added whole or cut in half. Pitting and slicing other stone fruits, such as peaches and apricots, should be done; leave aside.
4. Combine the liquid ingredients:
5. In a blender or food processor with a blade attachment, combine the milk, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Blend or process for about 20 seconds, or until the batter is smooth.
6. Add the flour, zest, and salt and pulse 5–7 times to barely combine the dry ingredients.
7. Fill the pan with the batter:
8. Fill the prepared pan with the batter. Add the fruit equally on top.
9. Bake: Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the cake is puffy, firm, and lightly golden brown around the edges.
10. Place the skillet on a wire rack and allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving (the clafoutis will deflate). If using, sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar, then slice or scoop and serve warm.

RECIPE NOTES

Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in a 300°F oven until warmed through.

Basic Clafoutis

Treat the clafoutis batter like you would waffle batter! Nothing more complex than that is involved. This recipe speaks to me because it is so straightforward, adaptable, and lovely all at once. I prefer to prepare clafoutis in a hefty pie pan or a black cast iron skillet since they retain heat effectively. You can use a crêpe pan, a tart mold, or even individual ramekins.

A clafoutis baked in the oven will puff up like a miniature soufflé, with browned borders and a creamy interior. I try to serve it right away because it will undoubtedly collapse and deflate, but don’t worry, it will still be wonderful even if it does. If you master this fundamental batter, the possibilities are practically endless: from chopping-friendly fruits like mango and banana to cherries kept in brandy, this batter is the ideal canvas for almost any fruit you can imagine. You may use this recipe all year long. There are variations, but this is the fundamental batter.