This recipe comes from the kitchen of Dave Adamshick, digital media consultant for PFM. It appears in the Portland Farmers Market Cookbook, available now! Be sure to stop by any of our five market locations to pick up your copy.
A clafouti (pronounced cla-foo-TEE) is among the best ways to enjoy cherries during their short and delicious season. A traditional custardy cake from rural southern France, it’s made with a simple, light batter (more crepe than pancake) that lets the flavor of the fruit shine through. Look for early-season Bing, Chelan, and Lambert cherries, and Vans to make this again in the summer. Some recipes claiming to be authentic insist on using cherries with their pits, for the subtle almond flavor they (and other stone-fruit pits) impart. But unless you’re willing to gamble on an after-hours visit to the dentist, use almond liqueur or pure almond extract instead. If you’re feeling really ambitious, save the pits to make a custard sauce to accompany your clafouti. We like to serve this with a glass of chilled cherry cider.
Makes 6 servings.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup whole milk, slightly warm
- 4 eggs, lightly beaten
- 2 tablespoons amaretto, or 1 tablespoon pure almond extract (optional)
- 1 pound Bing or other sweet, dark cherries, stemmed and pitted
- Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting the clafouti
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Generously coat the inside of a 10-inch ovenproof skillet or pie pan with the butter.
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, granulated sugar, and salt and make a well in the middle.
- Add the milk, eggs, and amaretto.
- Stir the mixture together with a wooden spoon until well combined; the consistency of the batter will be similar to heavy cream.
- Cover the bottom of the buttered pan with the cherries, pour the batter over the top, and bake on the middle rack of the oven until the clafouti is firm, 35 to 45 minutes. Remove the pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes before dusting the clafouti with confectioners’ sugar. Serve warm.