Cherry Clafoutis is a rustic French dessert made with cherries and a rich dense custard. We love it warm from the oven with a dusting 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.
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Some desserts are so simple to make and satisfying to eat that 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.
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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. The custard was made with a minimal amount of ingredients, topped with 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 recipe 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.
Ingredient Notes
- 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
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.
How to Make this Cherry Clafoutis Recipe
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.
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.
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.
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.
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, & Reheating
Make-Ahead: This recipe is best when made just before serving and can be assembled before dinner and then baked during dinner.
Storage & Reheating: Leftovers can be stored in the refrigerator in a sealed container and gently warmed in the microwave before serving.
More Delicious Fruit Desserts
♡ Did you love this Cherry Clafoutis? Please leave a star rating and a comment below!
📖 Recipe
Cherry Clafoutis
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Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Salted 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 Salted 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
Notes
Nutrition
Per 1 serving. All nutritional information on this site is an estimate. Your results may vary.
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