What in the world is Cherry Clafoutis? That was exactly what I wanted to know when I first stumbled upon this curious dessert recipe a few years back. I was thumbing through one of my moms old cookbooks one day when I landed on a page with a recipe for Cherry Clafoutis. The ingredients looked so basic and the method so simple that I was at once intrigued. And while I can’t for the life of me remember the name of the cookbook nor the author, I do remember that the Cherry Clafoutis recipe was accompanied by neither a description nor a photo. For the author, the recipe must have been something as basic as chocolate cake that simply needed no introduction. But for me, I wanted to know what to expect in the end after mixing together the milk, sugar, eggs, vanilla, flour and cherries? And of course, I also wanted to know if Cherry Clafoutis could withstand a “Clean Cuisine” makeover and still remain as intact and tasty.
So, what is Cherry Clafoutis? Well, it turns out, it is a rustic French custard-like, bread-pudding-ish dessert from the Limousin region of France. Although, as its name implies, Cherry Clafoutis is typically studded with cherries, it can really be made with just about any fruit (I imagine apricots or blackberries would work especially well.) Subtly sweet, Cherry Clafoutis is just the sort of thing you might imagine some chic French housewife whipping together with effortless ease. Even though the ingredients in a traditional Cherry Clafoutis are incredibly basic, the French somehow have a way of turning something so simple into something so special. Superfast too, I might add.
Speaking of the ingredients, of course I did make a few tweaks here and there. If you want to take a quick peek at a classic Cherry Clafoutis recipe, you can check out Julia Child’s version HERE. My version is made with 100% whole grains, specifically I use biodynamic whole wheat flour (click HERE to learn more about the benefits of biodynamic flour and why it is even better than organic). If you can’t find the biodynamic flour, organic white whole wheat flour would work just fine. My Cherry Clafoutis recipe also does without empty calorie sugar and instead relies on “whole fruit” cherries and pureed dates along with just 2 tablespoons unrefined real maple syrup for plenty of natural sweetness. By the way, did you know maple syrup is not an empty calorie sweetener? Of course I also ditched the dairy. I even managed to work in some almonds and flaxseeds!
And finally, although Cherry Clafoutis is in fact a dessert, the ingredients in the recipe below are so clean and healthful that there really is no reason you couldn’t serve it for breakfast with a cup of coffee (and yes, coffee and clean eating can absolutely go hand in hand!)
Kitchen Favorites
Try Last Night’s Cherry Clafoutis Dessert for Breakfast
- Yield: 6 1x
Ingredients
- 3 cups pitted and halved cherries
- ½ cup Biodynamic flour (such as Isis or white whole wheat flour) or 1-for-1 gluten free flour
- ¼ cup ground flaxseeds (such as Barlean’s Forti-Flax)
- ¼ cup raw whole almonds
- 3 organic (pastured eggs)
- 10 pitted dates
- 2 teaspoons pure almond extract
- 2 tablespoons real maple syrup
- 1/8 teaspoon unrefined sea salt
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°. Lightly oil a 9-inch gratin dish. Arrange the cherries on the bottom of the dish.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour and flaxseeds. Set aside.
- In a Vitamix, add the almonds, eggs, dates, almond extract, maple syrup, salt and water. Process until smooth and creamy. Pour the almond-egg mixture into the bowl with the flour and whisk until ingredients are well blended. Pour the batter into the gratin dish on top of the cherries.
- Bake for about 30 to 40 minutes, until the clafoutis is set and golden. Let cool slightly. Cut into wedges and serve.
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