Classic French Clafoutis

[Ptipois]

My mother never took out the pits either.

Your mother was making clafoutis, therefore she wasn't taking out the pits.

I don't know about adding cinnamon to clafoutis. Seems a bit strange.

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The lemon juice and lemon rind are just as strange. That must be very nice but that's not a clafoutis.

As for the cunning tricks designed to replace flavour lost by pitting, why not just leave the pits in, the way the recipe was designed? Keep it simple.

If some people have such poor mouth and palate sensitivity so as not to notice that they're eating a whole cherry in a clafoutis and swallow the pits, they probably shouldn't eat clafoutis in the first place. Clafoutis should be eaten slowly and leisurely, not devoured.

[LindaK]

I don't know what's going on where y'all are at but here in The Capitol of the Free World it's the second week of cherry season, and my second week at the clafouti stove, and I've accrued a soupçon of wisdom to add to this thread, so I thought I'd put it up.

Ah, I miss the growing seasons of DC and other points south. We won't see cherries here in New England for a while.

Thanks for bumping this thread up agan, though. I've dusted off my mini gratin pans (I like the individual ones for dinner guests) and they are just waiting for the first local cherries so I can enter the clafouti contest. Sour cherries, if I can find them.

[hjshorter]

So, last night, I retreated into Julia's Art for the basic approach, though with a bit of Alice's spice leanings, and served the result with some home-made buttermilk ice cream.

I've never used any other recipe for clafouti and it always turns out beautifully.

[Busboy]

My mother never took out the pits either.

Your mother was making clafoutis, therefore she wasn't taking out the pits.

I don't know about adding cinnamon to clafoutis. Seems a bit strange.

←

The lemon juice and lemon rind are just as strange. That must be very nice but that's not a clafoutis.

As for the cunning tricks designed to replace flavour lost by pitting, why not just leave the pits in, the way the recipe was designed? Keep it simple.

If some people have such poor mouth and palate sensitivity so as not to notice that they're eating a whole cherry in a clafoutis and swallow the pits, they probably shouldn't eat clafoutis in the first place. Clafoutis should be eaten slowly and leisurely, not devoured.

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Just finished up the rest of last night's clafoutis and the ice cream, with the leftover Sauternes (has any bunch of restes ever been so good?) and so am in a very good mood.

I confess to being eager to launch a taste-test between pitted and non-pitted clafoutis. Until it is proved that the pits make the dish taste better, however, I'd rather get my work done up front, pitting the cherries in advance, and not have to worry about cracking a tooth while sitting on the front porch, eating dessert, and watching the fireflies spark and the moon rise.

I promise, P'tit, that I do not devour. In fact, the best part of the clafouti may be the half-brown bits around the edge of the pan that you eat with your fingers (quelle horreur) after everyone else has had their share. I can work a clafouti and a bottle of sweet wine for an hour-and-a-half. And, you know, even insensitive thugs deserve a chance to have a taste of summer, even if they have a "poor mouth" and lack "palate sensitivity." I know that you know that the world would be a better place if even the most insensitive among us were eating fresh cherries the way God and French tradition meant us to eat them.

PS: I don't know where you are in France, but when my daughter tasted this morning's batch of cherries she said, "they're almost as good as the ones we had in France," bought in Isle sur la Sorgue. I'm betting, despite philosophical differences on this, that either one of us could whip up a swell dessert on a beautiful night.

Gotta run: more cherries to pit.

[ingridsf]

Alice also bakes the cherries for a bit first, dusts with cinnamon and lemon rind, and throws a little lemon juice into the mix.

My mom puts lemon juice and cinnamon in all her baked fruit desserts. Just don't use too much, and there'll be a subtle depth from the cinnamon and the acid will balance the sweet.

I'm getting cherries in my produce box for the first time this week!

[Ptipois]

Hey, Bus, no offence intended, it's just that a clafoutis is a clafoutis — not a thingee, delicious as it may be, with pitted cherries and/or lemon juice, lemon rind, cinnamon and what else. All the brilliant variations in the world won't keep clafoutis from being the way its Limousin creators from long ago meant it to be.

Now call it as you wish, actually the dispute between pitted/unpitted is worthless since a true clafoutis means unpitted cherries. But it's not that important. The pitted type is only a bit less interesting and subtle. A flan with cherries is never to be despised.

The original cherry used in a clafoutis is the guigne, a bitter, dark, juicy type meant for cooking. The stone is very small and difficult to remove without creating a mess of black juice that makes the clafoutis-making impossible. Hence the tradition. The unpitted thing tends to produce a very nice contrast between the crunchy, sour cherries and the mellow, sweet batter. That's the whole point of it. Some people go as far as not removing the stalk entirely — cutting it a few millimeters short of the fruit to seal the juices in and add some flavour.

However the cherries, when they're very plump and juicy, threaten to burst during cooking. There's a trick for this: when they're in the dish, kept in place by the thin layer of butter, prick each one with a pin before adding the batter.

And, you know, even insensitive thugs deserve a chance to have a taste of summer, even if they have a "poor mouth" and lack "palate sensitivity."

That wasn't directed to you but to those who advocate pitting for fear of accidents. But someone who eats clafoutis and chokes on stones or cracks a tooth on them just eats it too fast, without the philosophy it requires. I didn't say that was your case. So don't pit the cherries!

I know that you know that the world would be a better place if even the most insensitive among us were eating fresh cherries the way God and French tradition meant us to eat them.

Please enjoy the Summer by all means! But you can do it and not pit the cherries.

PS: I don't know where you are in France, but when my daughter tasted this morning's batch of cherries she said, "they're almost as good as the ones we had in France," bought in Isle sur la Sorgue. I'm betting, despite philosophical differences  on this, that either one of us could whip up a swell dessert on a beautiful night.

I'm pretty sure of that. I am in Paris but my father was from Limousin and Auvergne (clafoutisland). And I was partly raised in Nice, where cherries are tops. They are quite good this year, by the way.

[jennahan]

Patricia Wells' "Food Lover's Guide to Paris" (Fourth Edition) has a recipe for Fondant aux poires Le Cameleon which I have made many times. I have had many people ask me if it was a clafouti. I couldn't answer because the only clafouti I have had was baked by an aunt of my husband in Brittany...and it was not much different from a far Breton.

Are any of you familiar with this recipe, and do you think that I could replace the pears with cherries (I promise I won't call it a clafouti), and is this cake similar in taste to a clafouti?

PS: I'd replace the rum with kirsch, and +/- ground almonds

Edited June 27, 2005 by jennahan (log)

[Ptipois]

It makes sense that your husband's Breton aunt's pear "clafoutis" tasted more like a far breton, because she probably used a method more suited for farz (far) than for clafoutis. There is not much difference between clafoutis and farz except that clafoutis is softer and richer. Farz is usually sturdier food, keeps longer than a clafoutis and is not so wet.

Anyway there are many things called "clafoutis" (we've seen that) but stricto sensu (then everyone does what they like of course) the word "clafoutis" is only for the cherry version. In Limousin, any pastry involving a clafoutis batter with any other fruit is called a flognarde, and you make it when you have no other choice, i.e. when cherries are out of season.

Of course the name escaped from its original context in various manners. In Auvergne, I've seen old ladies make "clafoutis" with raisins soaked in rum. The batter was very clafoutis-like, slightly puffy because it had been left to rest and then had been whisked madly before going to the oven. That was very fine but it really would have been called a flognarde in Limousin, which is a few doorsteps away.

Which doesn't keep everybody else, including all kinds of chefs, from making clafoutis with pears, raspberries, apricots, even bacon or asparagus. Ducasse's "clafoutis" is a thing of beauty, made on a basis of crème pâtissière, eggs, tons of butter, truckloads of ground almonds and a few pitted griottes. It is one of the most delicious and luscious pastries I've ever eaten. But it is not really a clafoutis.

To answer your question simply: if that pastry is called a "fondant aux poires", then it is not a clafoutis. It is... a fondant aux poires.

[jennahan]

Oh I definitely agree that it isn't a clafouti, I just wanted to know if anyone has tried this recipe and if it TASTES like clafouti.

[Ptipois]

What's the recipe like, pears aside ?

[little ms foodie]

clafouti using WA grown cherries, I pitted them and also used kirsch

not as pretty as Paula's but my husband had seconds!

[Druckenbrodt]

This thread is making me desperate to rush out and make clafoutis with all those inky black cherries on sale at the moment. At the risk of encouraging this thread to be shunted into another forum, please could someone supply their favourite clafoutis recipe?... I could check in one of my books, or perhaps elsewhere on Egullet, but it wouldn't be the same after all the poetic descriptions and fascinating discussions that have already taken place on this thread...

Going back to the 'pit or not to pit' question. On a purely practical level; if you don't pit and you warn everyone in advance, no-one can blame you if they're not paying attention and crack a tooth on a stone. If, on the other hand, you pit - but missed a cherry or two - then it's an even nastier mistake for the person who's let their guard down...

[Adam Balic]

My clafoutis from my recent trip to france. Made with griotte cherries from the garden and a recipe done from memory and "feel". It was left over night as my French hosts tell me that they never eat in warm or hot..

These are the cherries that I used and I have to say that authentic or not they had an excellent flavour that I prefer to using sweet cherries.

Edited July 19, 2005 by Adam Balic (log)

[little ms foodie]

I made another clafoutti for my in laws last weekend. This time I didn't pit. It was MUCH better. The look, the taste and eating it was more enjoyable with the pits. The cherries are so large that with the pits in you only put one in your mouth at a time, no problem! I will never pit my cherries for clafoutti again!

[pastrymama]

Dear Paula, I made your recipe and have a question about the baking temperature. The clafoutis puffed up and looked great until I scooped some out, it seemed to be curdled. I am wondering if the 425 temperature is correct and is the clafoutis supposed to be curdledly looking. I always thought they should be smooth textured. Any help will be appreciated. The flavor was outstanding and I would like to make it again, but would like to know what it should be like.

Thanks, Marilyn

[little ms foodie]

There is a great discussion in the French forum on clafoutis:

Clafoutis

[pastrymama]

Thanks for the link little ms foodie, but I don't see any reference to the texture question that I have. If anyone else can enlighten me I would be grateful.

Thanks, Marilyn

[little ms foodie]

generally if you have something that has curdled when cooking you are correct in thinking that your oven was too hot. Clafoutis should not be curdled, it should look like the pictures in the link (that's why I posted it so you could see some shots). Try lowering your temp- I cook mine at 350F for about 25 minutes. good luck!

[sandercohan]

Slightly parallel question:

I'm planning a mid-week dinner party and I want to have clafouti for dessert. Do you think you can make the batter a day ahead, and keep it in the fridge until "go" time? Or do you think it might get too gluteny and lose airy-ness?

I realize it wouldn't be too much to do it the day of, but I'm trying to reduce the amount of time I spend in the kitchen during dinner parties (I've been accused of hiding).

s

[russ parsons]

years ago i went through a whole series of experiments making clafoutis. here is the recipe i came up with. it is dead easy. the batter can be made in advance and refrigerated, then given a stir before baking. i made mine with apricots since it was early spring, but it will work equally well with other types of fruit.

APRICOT-ALMOND CLAFOUTIS

Sugar

3 eggs

3/4 cup whipping cream

3/4 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 cup flour

8 apricots, about, cut in half and pitted

1/3 cup slivered almonds

*

* In blender or food processor, blend 1/4 cup sugar, eggs, cream, milk and almond extract until smooth. Sift flour over mixture and pulse just to mix. Set batter aside to stand 10 minutes.

* Arrange apricots, cut-side down, in heavily buttered and sugared 9-inch glass pie plate. When batter has rested, pour batter over apricots. Sprinkle with almonds and another 1 to 2 tablespoons sugar.

* Bake at 400 degrees until puffed and brown, about 45 minutes. Serve immediately.

*

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

[rickster]

I've got to add a vote for Russ' recipe. I had some great farm market apricots last week and used them in this recipe. Probably the easiest and fastest baking recipe I've ever made and the results turned out delicious.

[Wolfert]

Pastrymama:

I'm sorry I didn't see your post until now. The temperature is correct. You need a hot oven for the slightly fermented batter to rise properly. On the other hand, it shouldn't have curdled.

Most recipes for clafoutis instruct you to make a sweet, thick batter without overbeating, pack pitted (or not) cherries into a buttered dish, gently spread the batter on top, then bake if off. The problem is that most clafoutis made this way will come out heavy, "bloody" looking (from the cherry juice) and overly sweet.

As with many allegedly "simple" regional recipes, I found there is always one cook whose rendition is the best in town. The best clafoutis I ever ate was at the hotel restaurant La Cremaillere in Brive-la-Gaillarde in the Limousin. The chef, Charlou Reynal, shared some of his thoughts on making a fine clafoutis: "Be sure to blend the batter well to make it perfectly smooth, then let it sit out for a few hours to rest."

Trying his method, I got excellent results. Indeed, "the rest" is the essential secret: it allows the proteins in the flour to relax and slightly ferment causing the batter to rise first to the top of the skillet, and, when it falls (and it surely will!), it ends up a lot lighter and smoother than if it hadn't been well blended and rested.

Edited August 15, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[pastrymama]

Paula, Thank you for your reply. The clafoutis I made with your recipe was wonderful tasting, it was just the texture that i was wondering about. I will try again and blend it better, I did have some small lumps, but I thought they wouldn't matter and I'll let it rest longer.

I have been a pastry chef for almost 30 years and have tried a few different clafoutis recipes, they usually came out like you described, dense and rubbery. So I have avoided them. I am working with a French chef now and would really like to get this right. I think it is so great that you take the time to read our questions and answer us. Thank you so much. Marilyn

[Wolfert]

Marilyn.

I just found the notebook with specifics from Chef Charlou.

Your result upset me. I worried that I had made a typing error, but I didn't. In my notes, the chef specified Gas Mark 7 as the ideal temperature to bake the clafoutis. So I googled to check my work and yes, indeed, Gas Mark 7 equals 425F or 220C I hope it works next time. It did for me.

ON the other hand, I also googled 'charlou' and 'clafloutis' and the recipe posted on the internet calls for a 180 C oven!

Paula, Thank you for your reply.  The clafoutis I made with your recipe was wonderful tasting, it was just the texture that i was wondering about.  I will try again and blend it better, I did have some small lumps, but I thought they wouldn't matter and I'll let it rest longer. 

  

I have been a pastry chef for almost 30 years and have tried a few different clafoutis recipes, they usually came out like you described, dense and rubbery.  So I have avoided them.  I am working with a French chef now and would really like to get this right.  I think it is so great that you take the time to read our questions and answer us.  Thank you so much.    Marilyn

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Edited August 15, 2005 by Wolfert (log)

[Smithy]

on another note, was anybody else curious about someone trying to cook a dish that they had never eaten before? this isn't critical, as i've done it myself (and with clafoutis, too, as a matter of fact ... when i started out i was utterly seduced by the picture in paul bocuse cooks at home ... disappointing recipe, as well). it seems a little to me like trying to play a song from reading a chord progression. do you think this is just an american thing?

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Not to derail the conversation, but I'm as interested in this other note as in the original topic - and no, I'm not at all surprised. I frequently try recipes for dishes I've never eaten but that sound interesting. (If I were to cavil, I would liken it more to sight-reading a piece of music previously unheard, rather than trying to construct the melody from the chord progression alone, but that would be cavilling.) I heard or read once that cookbooks took off in America because so many pioneers moved away from their family roots to places where there were unfamiliar ingredients and customs. Without previous generations around to show the way, it became vital to come up with precise measurements and exact descriptions of a dish, because someone might not know what the end result was supposed to be enough to make adjustments. It always made sense to me. Then again, it could be bogus pop history.

My one effort at clafouti was not exactly a disaster, but wasn't worth repeating either. I took it to a family gathering, where it was eagerly greeted. "A clafouti!" my sister-in-law exclaimed, "I've always wondered what it's like!" Everyone politely ate a piece, but nobody wanted seconds... and in this family, leftovers are rare. It never occurred to me before now that clafouti might be tricky to get right.