CLAFOUTIS-THE PERFECT DESSERT FOR THE SEASON

Ash Wednesday is welcomed by people of all cultures, especially in northern climates, as the opening shot for the count-down to spring. Even if there’s still snow on the ground, it’s an official reassurance that winter is ending and warm weather is on the way. Our appetites seem to react fastest. We no longer crave the hearty soups, stews and roasts. We want lighter foods, which keep us looking ahead, centered on fresh vegetables and fruits.

The trouble is Mother Nature isn’t always in sync with the calendar. Those crops usually aren’t ready yet so we have to improvise. Nowadays, most berries, melons, and several vegetables  are fresh in markets all year. More are available frozen, like peaches, peas and green beans and there’s always the old stand-by, canned. Melons don’t cook, but the perfect presentation for the other fruits at this season is a clafoutis.

Clafoutis (kluh·fau·tuhs) is a fruit filled custard like dessert from Southern France. It’s light, showcases fruit can be served hot or at room temperature, but never chilled. It’s a perfect way to satisfy our cravings in this in-between season. Best of all, clafoutis is really a hybrid of baked fruit custard and pudding cake, it’s easier to make than either, requiring only one bowl,  needing no scalded milk or strained batter to prepare and is suitable for any occasion using the same fool-proof batter recipe. 

The variety of Clafoutis is decided by the choice and treatment of the fruit, not alterations to the batter or ‘master recipe’. In fact, this dish is an oddity. French chefs like to put their fingerprint on their version of a classic recipe, but having checked several books by prominent chefs, several by newer ‘ Bistro chefs’, a translation of an antique classic and one from Le Cordon Bleu, I found this recipe surprisingly unchanged. The only differences were suggestions to substitute heavy cream or half-and-half for part of the milk. I’m going to rely, chiefly on Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, but include the other suggestions in parentheses

As I wrote in a previous post, (Jan. 11, 2018) the first time I made clafoutis some friends dropped by, while it was baking, and demanded to know what smelled so heavenly. That evening we learned the taste equals the smell and clafoutis has been a regular on the family menu ever since.

RECIPES: 

Clafoutis-Master Recipe: Serves 6-8
1) Have ready a greased ovenproof container equal in capacity to a 9 inch round cake pan. For a larger quantity double the size of the pan or use 2 pans.
2) Preheat oven to 350 deg.
3) You will need 3 cups, or 1 ¼ -1 ½ lb. fresh, prepared fruit, pitted and/or cored, peeled and sliced if large or equal amount of canned, well drained.
4) NOTE-Store leftovers chilled—if you have any

Batter
1 ¼ cups milk (or ¾-1 cup milk and ¼-1/2 cups heavy cream or half-and-half)
3 eggs
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbs. vanilla
1/8 tsp. salt
2/3 cup sifted flour
1/3 cup sugar
Powdered sugar to sprinkle as garnish
If using a blender, add first 6 ingredients in order listed and blend 1 min. at top speed. If using a mixer, beat the eggs first, then add the solids and finally the liquid. Beat until smooth.
Pour about ¼ of the batter into the pan and bake 3-5 min. until set. Arrange fruit on top of the baked batter, sprinkle with the extra 1/3 cup sugar, and pour the rest of the batter over all. Bake in the center of the oven for about an hour, until puffed and golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Garnish with sprinkled powdered sugar just before serving.
The Clafoutis will fall a bit as it cools and is best served warm.

Cherry Clafoutis
Fresh pitted cherries or canned, drained Bing cherries.
¼ cup kirsch or cognac
1/3 cup sugar
Marinate cherries in above ingredients for 1 hr. Replace equal amount of the milk with the marinating liquid, omit the second 1/3 cup sugar sprinkled over the fruit in the master recipe and proceed as directed.

Pear Clafoutis
Fresh pears peeled, cored and sliced or drained, canned pear halves
¼ cup sweet white wine, kirsch or cognac
1/3 cup sugar
Proceed as directed for Cherry Clafoutis above

Peach or Plum Clafoutis
If using fresh fruit, drop them in boiling water for 1 min. to peel, otherwise use drained, canned halves
¼ cup orange liqueur, kirsch, cognac or peach brandy.
1/3 cup sugar
Proceed as directed for Cherry Clafoutis.

Apple Clafoutis
Cut prepared apples in ¼ inch slices-Choose crisp cooking apples
¾ Tbs. butter
¼ cup Calvados, rum or cognac
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1/3 cup sugar
Sauté the apples in the butter until brown. Add the liqueur, sugar and spice and allow to stand for ½ hr. Proceed as directed for the Cherry Clafoutis above.

Blueberry Clafoutis
3 cups stemmed, washed and dried blueberries
Increase flour to 1 ¼ cups
¼ cup kirsch, orange liqueur or brandy
1/3 cup sugar
The increase in flour is needed to compensate for the extra juice in the blueberries. The resulting dessert will have a consistency resembling a Pudding Cake.
Otherwise follow the recipe for Cherry Clafoutis.

Almond Clafoutis-Usually done with Cherry or Pear recipes, but is good with Peach and Plum as well
½ cup blanched almonds
1 tsp. almond extract
Puree the almonds with the batter and add the extract. Proceed with the recipe.

French Pear Clafoutis: Serves 8- From thespruceeats.com

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

1 cup whole milk

1/4 cup heavy cream

2/3 cup all-purpose flour

3 large eggs

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

4cups pear slices

1 tablespoon confectioners’ sugar

 Butter a 9 x 9-inch square baking dish or a 9-inch deep-dish pie round. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, cream, flour, eggs, sugar, vanilla extract, nutmeg, and salt until it forms a smooth, thin batter. Spread 3/4 cup of the batter onto the bottom of the prepared baking dish and bake it in a reheated 350 deg. oven for 2 to 4 min. Watch the batter closely and remove it before it cooks through completely. It should just start to thicken and set when it is removed from the oven. Transfer the dish to a heatproof surface and arrange the pears over the hot batter. Pour the remaining batter over the pears and bake for 35 to 40 min, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Sprinkle the confectioners’ sugar over the finished clafouti and serve it warm.
Variations: Other fruits to consider are summer apricots. To make an apricot clafoutis, cut the apricot in two and remove the stone then proceed with the recipe as above, using the apricot halves instead of the pears. 

Grape Clafoutis: Serves 8-From jocooks.com

1 lb.  seedless grapes-red are more decorative

1¾ cup milk

1 tsp. vanilla extract

4 eggs

¼ cup butter (melted)

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ cup sugar (granulated)

Butter baking dish with some of the melted butter.

Place the grapes on the bottom of the baking dish. In a blender add the flour, sugar, vanilla extract, remaining butter, eggs, and milk. Blend everything together so that it makes a nice thin batter. Pour the clafoutis batter over the grapes. Bake in a preheated 375 deg. oven for about 1 hr or until the center is set. Optionally, dust with powdered sugar.