Clafoutis patootie… you’re going to want to try this classic French dessert that we served at our ‘Tres Bien’ Frenchy French Tuesday Lunch this week. Tres bien, indeed! The Basic Clafoutis recipe we used today was from epicurious.com (Nov 2013), and it can be customized in a number of ways. We made ours a Cherry Clafoutis and served it with fresh whipped cream. Try one of the ones suggested below, or get creative and try your own. If you do, let us know! What worked? What didn’t? We’d love to know, and to see the pictures…
Basic Clafoutis
- 1 cup whole milk
- 3 eggs
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and butter until the sugar is dissolved. Add the flour and whisk until smooth. Pour the batter into a cast iron skillet or pie pan.
Add your favorite fruit or flavorings (see variations below). Place in the oven to bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the clafoutis is beautifully puffed and golden. Serve immediately.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.
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VARIATIONS:
Cherry Clafoutis: Scatter 2 cups pitted cherries onto the batter once it’s poured into pie plates.
Concord Grape Clafoutis: Once the batter is in the skillet, scatter 2 cups slightly crushed Concord or other black or red grapes on top.
Pear Clafoutis wth Pear Eau de Vie: Core 1 ripe pear and cut into pieces. Pour the batter into the skillet and top with the pear pieces. Bake. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons eau de vie and serve immediately.
Milk Chocolate and Hazelnut Clafoutis: Melt 1 cup chopped milk chocolate in a large mixing bowl set above a simmering pot of water. Fold in the clafoutis batter until smooth and fully incorporated. Pour into a skillet or pie plate, sprinkle with ¼ cup coarsely chopped hazelnuts, and bake.
