The Co-op Food Stores

added 03/07/08

The clafouti is traditional
during cherry season in the historic province in central France known
as Limousin. It is peasant cooking for family meals and about as simple
a dessert to make as you can imagine—a pancake batter poured over
fruit in a fireproof dish, then baked in the oven. It looks like a tart
and is usually eaten warm.

Serves 6-8

1 1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 Tbs. vanilla
1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 cup flour
3 cups cherries, pitted (If available, choose fresh, black sweet cherries.
Otherwise use drained, canned Bing cherries)
1/3 cup sugar
Powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350°F.
In a blender blend the milk, sugar, eggs, vanilla, salt, and flour. Pour
a 1/4-inch layer of the batter in a 7- to 8-cup lightly buttered fireproof
baking dish. Place in the oven until a film of batter sets in the pan.
Remove from the heat and spread the cherries over the batter. Sprinkle
on the 1/3 cup of sugar. Pour on the rest of the batter. Bake for 45 to
60 minutes. The clafouti is done when puffed and brown and a knife plunged
in the center comes out clean. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, and serve
warm.

Cook’s Note:
A variation of the classic version marinates the cherries in a mixture
of 1/4 cup kirsch and 1/3 cup sugar for one hour. Substitute this liquid
for part of the milk called for in the batter; omit the 1/3 cup sugar
near the end of the recipe.

—Adapted
from Mastering the Art of French Cooking
by Julia Child