Vegan Cherry Clafoutis! This recipe is gluten-free, packed with protein and nutrients, and makes for a sweet breakfast treat or dessert. Cherry clafoutis is a French classic, typically baked with unrefined sugar and full-fat milk. Using refined sugar and plant-based milk, this dairy-free clafoutis recipe offers a guilt-free vegan alternative.

Vegan Cherry Clafoutis

A clafoutis (pronouced kla-foo-tee) is a French dessert that would be best explained as a cross between a custard and a cake, traditionally studded with cherries. My very vegan cherry clafoutis makes no concessions for flavor or texture, and it might almost make your heart miss a beat, it’s that great-looking. You can adapt this recipe to a gluten-free diet.

If you’re looking for a great cherry dessert this time of year, look no further than this vegan Cherry Clafoutis. It’s the kind of food that’ll win you rave reviews even if your family is used to your Michelin-star-quality recipes; and yet it’s easy enough for an inexperienced baker to pull off with very little chance of failure.

Overhead shot of vegan cherry clafoutis in an old fashioned yellow and white baking dish with a pie server and gray napkin.

The stars of this clafoutis are the cherries, of course, but what lifts it into the realm of the sublime is the almond. I actually use it in three different ways in this dish: I stir in some almond flour and some amaretto, an almond flavored liqueur, or almond extract, into the batter, and I scatter some blanched, sliced almonds on top, although those are optional.

The story goes that French chefs made the clafoutis with cherries that still had their pits in them, and the pits imparted a slightly bitter, almond-like flavor to the dish. Don’t try it unless you want to make a detour to the dentist during the dessert course.

Photo of a slice of vegan cherry clafoutis on a white plate with a fork.

How to make a delicious vegan clafoutis:

This is a truly easy dessert–the New York Times says you could make it while the rest of your dinner is in the oven. The batter is mixed up in a blender, and all you really need to do is pit your cherries.

When blending the batter, just pulse lightly a few times until everything comes together–don’t overmix. Overworking flour causes gluten to form, and you want to keep things as tender as possible in this cake.

Fresh cherries are abundant right now, but if you just have the frozen kind, that’s fine too. You also likely won’t have to go to the trouble of pitting them because the frozen fruit is already pitted.

Eggs and milk (or cream) give clafoutis its incredible custard-cake texture. For my vegan version, I used silken tofu and a mixture of flours.

I use amaretto for flavoring because I love a hint of boozy flavor in my deserts. But if you’d rather not, use good old almond extract instead.

Clafoutis can be served warm or cold. The sooner you cut into it, the more tender it will be, which also means it won’t slice as easily while hot. But if you let it cool thoroughly it will slice beautifully. I like to keep mine in the refrigerator for a few hours because it tastes divine cold.

You can even serve this clafoutis for a sumptuous breakfast–it’s healthy enough and fruity enough to make that jump.

Can I use another fruit in the clafoutis?

Yes. You can use berries, peaches, apples, prunes, apricots–try it with any fruit that you love.

What kind of pan should I use?

Again, you have a lot of leeway. I used an oval baking dish but a regular deep dish pie pan would work great. Or a square or round cake tin works too.

Vegan Cherry Clafoutis

Hi friends! Cherry season is here and I present you my vegan cherry clafoutis recipe! This is one of the easiest French recipes you can make and with its fancy French name and gorgeous appearance it’s certain to be a crowd pleaser!

Clafoutis, quite simply, is a baked flan consisting of LOTS of cherries baked in a sweet rich batter.

I love any recipe that packs a punch either in flavour or in richness and this does both! Also, not everyone is familiar with clafoutis (I wasn’t until last year) so anyone that tries this version may be trying this type of dessert for the first time so hopefully they will fall in love with it and won’t ever need to try the non-vegan version!

*Fun fact: a traditional clafoutis contains the pits of the cherries because the pits contain benzaldehyde which apparently is the active chemical found in almond extract (adding a complementary note) to the overall dish flavour! Don’t eat the cherry bits though because they’ll break your teeth and they also contain amygdalin which creates cyanide…

I prefer to leave the pits in as it prevents the cherry juices from leaking everywhere but if you’re serving this to kids or a large group it might be better to pit the cherries and just add an extra drop of almond extract instead.

…onto the recipe!

For this recipe you’ll need a tart tin/baking dish approximately 26-28cm in diameter and a food processor.

5 from 4 reviews

Vegan Cherry Clafoutis

April 12, 2019Servings

: 12Difficulty

: Easy

A deliciously creamy custard-based tart designed to elevate the vibrant flavours and juices of cherries! Best made during cherry season!

Ingredients

400g cherries
350g silken tofu
180ml soy milk (or soy cream for richer flavour)
120g caster sugar
120g plain flour (or oat/rice flour for GF version!)
80g almond flour
20g cornstarch (or any other starch – potato, tapioca, etc.)
25g vegan butter (+extra for greasing pan)
2tsp vanilla paste/extract
1tsp almond extract
1/2tsp salt
1 small lemon (zest and juice)
(Optional) 1 tbsp Kirsch (cherry brandy)

Directions

STEP 1Pre-heat oven to 170C.
STEP 2Grease the baking dish with vegan butter.
STEP 3Process the tofu with the plant milk thoroughly.
STEP 4Once blended, sieve in the sugar, flours and corn starch.
STEP 5Melt the butter in the microwave.
STEP 6Add the butter, vanilla, almond extract and lemon zest to the tofu mix.
STEP 7Blend for 1-2 minutes to get a smooth consistency. Be careful not to whip too much air into the batter as it will cause the clafoutis to puff up.
STEP 8Pour the batter into the baking dish and spread out evenly.
STEP 9Place all the cherries into the batter (pack in as many as you can!)
STEP 10Sprinkle extra sugar lightly on top of the batter and put in the oven.
STEP 11Bake for 40 minutes until puffed and golden!
STEP 12A toothpick should come out relatively clean after poking.