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Home » Recipes » Desserts & Treats Recipes

Cherry Clafoutis

Published: Jul 11, 2022 · Modified: Apr 22, 2023 by Jan Nunes

Baked cherry clafoutis in a white baking dish with text overlays.
Baked cherry clafoutis in a white baking dish with text overlays.
Baked cherry clafoutis in a white baking dish with text overlays.

Cherry Clafoutis is a rustic French dessert containing fruit and rich, dense custard. It is delicious, served warm from the oven with just a sprinkling of powdered sugar.

This classic dessert is like a cobbler but with a custard or flan-type cake where the fruit is the star.

Although fresh cherries are traditional in a clafoutis many other fruits can be used such as blackberries, raspberries, nectarines, and apricots.

Baked cherry clafoutis in a white baking dish and a small bowl of cherries.
Jump to Recipe

There are some desserts that are so simple to make and satisfying to eat, you want to make them over and over again. Clafoutis is one of those desserts because you can vary the choice of fruit and the level of sweetness to your liking.

Containing eggs, sugar, milk, cream, and a small amount of flour, clafoutis reminds me of my Cranberry Sugar Pie. It mixes up quickly with just simple ingredients and it is so delicious I like to make it often.

Jump to:
  • What is a Clafoutis?
  • Cherry Clafoutis With or Without Cherry Pits?
  • Ingredients
  • How to Pit Cherries
  • Instructions
  • My Top Tips
  • Substitutions & Variations
  • Make-Ahead & Storage
  • More Delicious Fruit Desserts
  • 📖 Recipe
  • 💬 Comments

What is a Clafoutis?

A clafoutis is a rustic French dessert containing fruit and a dense custard. It became a very popular dessert in the 19th century and contained a minimal amount of ingredients to make a custard that was topped or contained seasonal fresh fruit and then baked.

It is one of those recipes that vary from cook to cook as they use ingredients they have on hand or are seasonal. If they have 2 eggs they decrease the milk and if they have 4 eggs they increase the milk. Just a scant amount of fruit can be stretched and the flavor combinations are infinite.

The "custard" can vary in texture and is dependent on the amount of flour that is added to the custard mixture. You can use as little as 2 tablespoons of flour to have a softer flan-like pudding or use 1 cup of flour and the texture becomes more like bread pudding.

Variations can also include the addition of citrus and other flavorings that enhance the fruit, such as lemon with raspberries and cinnamon with apples.

This clafoutis uses fresh ripe cherries and with just ½ cup of flour, it has a rich, but not overly dense custard.

Cherry Clafoutis With or Without Cherry Pits?

I am not a fan of serving any cherry dessert without pitting the cherries.

Every summer my mom canned cherries with the pits and every winter we ate those cherries at breakfast. I understand that it would have been difficult to pit 50 pounds of cherries. But I hated those pits and I still do.

Although some cooks and recipes state that leaving the pits is essential for good flavor, I believe it is a bad practice to serve pits that can crack a tooth or be a choking hazard. I want my guests to enjoy a nice dessert and not have to think about spitting pits out with every bite.

Ingredients

Ingredients clockwise from top: cherries, butter, milk, heavy cream, a-p flour, vanilla extract, salt, large eggs, and sugar.
  • Butter - Both salted and unsalted kinds of butter are fine.
  • Large Eggs - Large eggs will give the correct volume of eggs in this recipe.
  • Whole Milk - Do not substitute low-fat or skim milk.
  • Heavy Cream - Heavy cream gives richness to the custard.
  • White Granulated Sugar - Both the custard and the cherries will need a bit of sweetness and cherries and white sugar go very well together.
  • Vanilla Extract - Lovely vanilla extract flavors the custard.
  • Salt - Just a small amount of salt will bring out the sweetness in the custard.
  • All-Purpose Flour - Simple all-purpose flour gives body to the custard.
  • Cherries - Fresh cherries are best. Be sure to wash and pit the cherries before adding them. Frozen cherries that are pitted, thawed, and drained will also work.
  • Powdered Sugar, Optional - A dusting of powdered sugar over the top of the clafoutis is a very pretty look

Please see the recipe card for quantities.

How to Pit Cherries

Cherries being pitted; a bowl of cherries, a cherry pitter, and a paring knife.

Wash the cherries and remove the stems. Place a cherry into a cherry pitter and squeeze to expel the cherry. I prefer to expel the pit into my other hand to be sure that the pit has been removed. If the pit was not expelled, a chopstick is an excellent tool to guide a pit out of a cherry.

If you do not have a cherry pitter, you can use a paring knife. Simply cut around the cherry to the pit, separate the two halves of the cherry, and remove the pit.

Instructions

Melting butter in shallow flameproof baking dish.

Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Put the butter in a 10-inch flameproof baking dish. Melt it over medium-low heat on the stove. Remove from heat and set it aside for later.

Adding flour to the wet ingredients to make the batter.

Whisk the eggs, whole milk, heavy cream, ¼ cup granulated sugar, vanilla extract, and salt until all is well beaten. Add the flour and continue to whisk until it is fully incorporated.

The batter and cherries in the flameproof baking dish, ready for the oven.

Pour the batter into the baking dish. Arrange the cherries evenly over the top of the batter and sprinkle the top of the batter with the reserved ¼ cup of granulated sugar.

The clafoutis fresh from the oven puffed and golden brown.

Bake 35 to 45 minutes until set, puffed, and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

Baked cherry clafoutis in a white baking dish.

Remove the cherry clafoutis from the oven and allow it to cool slightly. Dust with powdered sugar and serve while still warm.

My Top Tips

♡ Use Less Fruit. Sometimes you might not have the full amount of fruit listed in this recipe. The good news is this recipe can be made with less fruit by halving the cherries.

♡ Change the Texture. The amount of flour varies the texture. The ½ cup of flour in this recipe makes a firm but still tender custard. Change the flour to 1 cup and the texture becomes more like a bread pudding.

Substitutions & Variations

Substitute Almond Extract. Instead of vanilla extract substitute almond extract. Almond goes well with cherries and some chefs believe it mimics the extra flavor of leaving the pits in the cherries.

Substitute Kirsch Liqueur.  Kirsch is a clear, colorless brandy made from cherries and is an excellent substitution for vanilla extract.

Substitute Other Fruits. This recipe can also be made with a variety of fruits and flavorings. Other delicious choices are:

  • blackberries
  • raspberries
  • blueberries
  • halved and pitted apricots with sliced almonds and ¼ teaspoon of almond extract
  • cored and thinly sliced apples, or pears
  • sliced nectarines

Make-Ahead & Storage

This recipe is best when made just before serving and can be assembled before dinner and then baked during dinner.

Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator in a sealed container and gently warmed in the microwave before serving.

Baked cherry clafoutis in a white baking dish and a small bowl of cherries.

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♡ Did you try out this recipe? Please give it a Star Rating below and tag @enchartedcook on Instagram and hashtag it #enchartedcook.

📖 Recipe

Baked cherry clafoutis in a white baking dish.

Cherry Clafoutis

5 from 1 vote
Encharted Cook | Jan Nunes
Cherry Clafoutis is a rustic French dessert containing fruit and rich, dense custard. It is delicious, served warm from the oven with just a sprinkling of powdered sugar.
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Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Baking Time 45 minutes mins
Total Time 1 hour hr
Course Dessert
Cuisine French
Servings 6 Servings
Calories 326 kcal

Ingredients
 

  • 2 Tablespoons Butter
  • 3 Large Eggs
  • ¾ Cups Whole Milk
  • ½ Cup Heavy Cream
  • ½ Cup Granulated Sugar, Divided ¼ Cup in the Batter and ¼ Cup to Top the Batter
  • 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract
  • ¼ Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Cup All Purpose Flour
  • 3 Cups Cherries, Stemmed, Rinsed, Pitted, Drained
  • Powdered Sugar

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Put the butter in a 10-inch flameproof baking dish. Melt it over medium-low heat on the stove. Remove from heat and set it aside for later.
    2 Tablespoons Butter
  • Whisk the eggs, whole milk, heavy cream, ¼ cup granulated sugar, vanilla extract, and salt until all is well beaten. Add the flour and continue to whisk until it is fully incorporated.
    3 Large Eggs, ¾ Cups Whole Milk, ½ Cup Heavy Cream, ½ Cup Granulated Sugar, 1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract, ¼ Teaspoon Salt, 1 Cup All Purpose Flour
  • Pour the batter into the baking dish. Arrange the cherries evenly over the top of the batter and sprinkle the top of the batter with the reserved ¼ cup of granulated sugar.
    3 Cups Cherries
  • Bake 35 to 45 minutes until set, puffed, and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
  • Remove the cherry clafoutis from the oven and allow it to cool slightly. Dust with powdered sugar and serve while still warm.
    Powdered Sugar

Encharted Cook Notes

My Top Tips
♡ Use Less Fruit. Sometimes you might not have the full amount of fruit listed in this recipe. The good news is this recipe can be made with less fruit by halving the cherries.
♡ Change the Texture. The amount of flour varies the texture. The ½ cup of flour in this recipe makes a firm but still tender custard. Change the flour to 1 cup and the texture becomes more like a bread pudding.
Substitutions & Variations
Substitute Almond Extract. Instead of vanilla extract substitute almond extract. Almond goes well with cherries and some chefs believe it mimics the extra flavor of leaving the pits in the cherries.
Substitute Kirsch Liqueur.  Kirsch is a clear, colorless brandy made from cherries and is an excellent substitution for vanilla extract.
Substitute Other Fruits. This recipe can also be made with a variety of fruits and flavorings. Other delicious choices are:
  • blackberries
  • raspberries
  • blueberries
  • halved and pitted apricots with sliced almonds and ¼ teaspoon of almond extract
  • cored and thinly sliced apples, or pears
  • sliced nectarines
Make-Ahead & Storage
This recipe is best when made just before serving and can be assembled before dinner and then baked during dinner.
Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator in a sealed container and gently warmed in the microwave before serving.

Nutrition Per Serving

Calories: 326kcal | Carbohydrates: 42g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 118mg | Sodium: 176mg | Potassium: 224mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 606IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 74mg | Iron: 2mg

All nutritional information on this site is an estimate. Your results may vary.

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Jan Nunes, owner and content creator at Encharted Cook.

Hello and Welcome to Encharted Cook!

I'm Jan and I love to cook for friends and family. Over the years I have learned that many recipes are related and if you learn to make one delicious dish and you can make many more. So come join me as I chart recipes and ingredients and share my favorite dishes.

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