Cherry Clafoutis

Storms. Storms. STORMS! Brad and I, like many others in the Richmond, VA area, have been having these massive thunderstorms that like to knock down trees. Then, these poor trees knock down the poor electric lines. Then, these poor down electric lines make for some sad, poor powerless people. We are some of those people.  When the power  went out last night, at 12:30 am, we noticed that our house generator did not kick on. So we were up until at least 3:00 am fixing it and trying to fall back asleep again.

Slice of Cherry Clafoutis

Waking up this morning, at about 11:30 am, we decided to have a culinary adventure when our power came back. We made a cherry clafoutis (cla-fou-tee) to celebrate electrical power. It is a french dessert that was present in my Illustrated Baking Guide that Brad gave me for Christmas 2011. Basically, a clafoutis is brandy-soaked fruit in a vanilla Yorkshire pudding (also known as a popover).  There is nothing better than having a dessert for breakfast when you are aggravated. The neatest thing about this dessert is that it is not too horrible for you. One sixth of a 10 inch is actually only 7 Weight Watchers PointsPlus.


How to Make a Cherry Clafoutis


Equipment:
10 inch tart pan or shallow ovenproof dish, greased


Ingredients:


1lb 10 oz cherries
3 Tbsp Kirsch (or brandy... we used apple brandy and it worked well)
1/3 cup sugar
4 large eggs at room temperature
1 vanilla pod (optional)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
11/4 cup milk
pinch of salt


The Steps

Cherries Soaking in Brandy

 Step 1:Toss the cherries with the Kirsch or brandy and 2 tablespoons of sugar. Let them soak for 30minutes. 


Brad and I decided to pit our cherries before the soak using a cherry stoner we got on our wedding registry.  We always have a rhythm when we cook together. I pulled the stems out, and he punched the pits out. It went so quickly! We also placed them in the pan we were going to use first so that we knew how many cherries we were going to need.

Our Scraped Vanilla Pod

 Step 2: While the cherries soaking, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Scrape the vanilla beans out of the pod using a really sharp knife.  












 Step 3: Strain the liquid from the cherries into a large bowl. Add the eggs into the liquid mixture and mix very well. After the eggs are mixed, add the vanilla beans, and then the sugar.

Kirsch and Egg Mixture

Step 4:  Add the sifted flour in small increments and beat it until it is well mixed. It should make a smooth paste. Then, pour in the milk,and add the pinch of salt. Then, it will become a smooth batter. 

Flour Paste Mixture

Finished Smooth Batter

Step 5: Arrange the cherries in 1 layer on the greased tart dish. They should completely fill the dish.

Cherries Awaiting the Batter

Step 6: Slowly pour the batter over the top of the cherries. Be careful not to displace the cherries.  

The Unbaked Clafoutis

 Step 7: Bake the clafoutis for 35-45 minutes, or until the top is browned and the center is firm. When it is finished, you can dust it with confectioner's sugar and serve with whipped cream or ice cream!

The Finished Clafoutis