French Cherry Clafoutis Recipe (Clafoutis aux Cerises) 🍒

Cherry Clafoutis always reminds me of my grandma, who would serve me a four-course dinner instead of lunch when I’d come to her house on my high-school break. During cherry season, her kitchen would smell of clafoutis the moment I pass the door of her apartment, which was most delicious delicious and light addition to our feast. This French cherry clafoutis recipe is a tentative to reproduce my grandma’s kitchen in my own home.

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What You’ll Need

9″ round pie dish: I like to use glass so I can see how the clafoutis cooks. If you don’t have one, a cermic dish will work too!

Cherries: Traditionally, clafoutis uses un-pitted black cherries, which helps retain the fruit’s juice and sugar. Some rather unpitt the cherries, making the clafoutis more convenient to eat. Since I am more of the first opinion, this recipe uses cherries with their pit. But please, make it the way YOU prefer (no matter the debate).

All-purpose flour: I use King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour for its reliability and texture.

Powdered Almonds: This is totally optional, but I like a little nuttiness in this recipe. I usually use entire almonds and grind them in my food processor. You can use almond extract instead, but I swear the taste will not be the same.

Sugar: Feel free to adjust the amount of sugar depending on the sweetness level of your cherries––and always taste your cherries before baking!

Eggs: You can look at a clafoutis like a crepe batter poured over cherries, so eggs are definitely essential to this recipe. Make sure you use room temperature eggs.

Milk: I like to use whole milk, but you can use half & half for a creamier texture or a plant-based milk for a dairy-free version.

Vanilla Extract: It rounds out the flavors and add a very nice vanilla taste to the clafoutis.

Salt: Always use salt, even in sweet bakes—it brings everything into balance.

Butter: For greasing the baking pan.

Confectioner’s sugar: For dusting (and totally optional)

French Cherry Clafoutis Recipe: Step-by-step Instructions

Preparation:
Start by making sure all your ingredients are at room temperature! Wash your cherries and take the pits out if you’d like so. Preheat your oven to 350F degrees (175 C).

Mix the eggs and sugar:
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until foamy. Make sure everything is well mixed.

Add the rest of the ingredients:
Add the flour and almond powder to the egg-sugar mixture and whisk until there fully combine (and no more clumps). Once you reached your desired consistency, add the milk and mix again. The batter will be very liquid and that is a GOOD sign. Cherry clafoutis does not have a cake-like texture; it should look look like a thick crepe.

Add the batter to the cherries:
Grease an oven-proof round glass pan with butter and add a thin layer of sugar if you want to caramelize the bottom and side of your clafoutis. Lay the cherries on the bottom of your pan and make sure they cover the entire surface. Then pour the batter on top of the cherries.

Bake:
Bake your clafoutis for about 40 minutes, until sides are golden brown and the batter looks firm. Baking instructions are not set rules, so makes sure you check on your clafoutis before the 40-minutes mark.

Cool:
Let the clafoutis cool for about 15 minutes. This desert is super versatile and you can enjoy it hot, warm, or cold!