Clafoutis!

'Traditional' Cherry Clafoutis

Yes, there’s an exclamation mark in the title, that’s the way it needs to be.

Since late March when the cherry trees started blooming, I have been hearing about Clafoutis. Seems like every time the subject of cherries happens to come up (and often it is when the villages are all eying the multitude of cherry trees waiting for the fruit to ripen), a long conversation inevitably follows about how insanely delicious it is, how tasty it is, how fluffy it is, etc., etc., usually followed by a lot of lip smacking and drooling on the part of those in the know.

Unfortunately, I had never had the opportunity to goûter this specialty. Finally, the cherries everywhere were ripe and I waited patiently for the chance. I had been given a beautiful new oven (Thanks to the wonderful Mains family!) a few days previously, I had a couple buckets of cherries just sitting around, and Jeneane sealed the deal when she gave me the hook up on some amazingly fresh (still warm) eggs and a liter of unpasteurized milk. If I was ever going to try this famed delicacy, now was the time to do it.

Only one problem: Not only had I never baked or eaten one of these myself- I had never even seen one. I had only a vague idea of what it was like based on what I had heard from others, and that description was always pretty vague and mixed with more lip smacking and reminiscing on how damn good it was anyway…

“Make it like a crêpe batter and then add in the cherries and bake it.” This was the most definite description I had to go on… So, I got to work immediately.

In the end it turned out rather nicely- I was really afraid at first when the batter was all runny and it puffed up in the oven like it was going to explode. Then, when the crust was starting to brown it looked like the center was still an eggy mess… I just went with the flow and took it as it came. Sure enough, over the next few days my novice recette was tried and approved by Creusois everywhere. “Don’t change a thing,” I was told. I didn’t listen. I had to perfect it, and so over the next week I climbed the cherry tree daily looking for the freshest and sweetest fruit, lugged it back to my dirty kitchen and worked some magic. I think I’ve got it down, and solidified my reputation in the village in the process. This one’s a keeper…

So, here it is… Give this a try. It’s sooo worth it.

Cherry Clafoutis:

Four Eggs
50g Sugar
25g Butter (softened)
100g Flour
250ml Milk (or 125ml Milk and 125ml Cream)
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
Cherries (lots of them- about 600-800g)

Mix first four ingredients in order. Then add milk slowly while stirring. Mix in vanilla and add to greased tarte pan and then gently lay cherries (float) on top of the batter. Bake in 180°C/350°F oven for about 30 minutes. When the outer edge is brown, it’s ready. Let it sit for about 15 minutes and eat while it’s still warm!

TIP: “Some purists strongly advise against de-pitting the cherries used in a clafoutis. According to them, the pits release a wonderful flavor when the dish is cooked. A traditional Limousin clafoutis contains pits. If the pits are removed, the clafoutis will be milder.”