cherry clafoutis
You know what? I’m having a fantastic summer. Life is incredibly sweet, juicy opportunities for personal and professional development are cropping up left and right, we’re going to Napa in one month and — I’m thrilled.
Its terrible how little I like to talk about this, how fearful even the most level-headed of us can be of jinxing out all the good in the world by bringing it up. I mean, really. There is a difference between flaunting or bragging about a good life and celebrating it, or at least there ought to be. Did I tell you Alex and I had a little paper airplane flying contest before we went to bed two nights ago? Yeah, things are that kind of fun.
And then there are the cherries. My god, we’re just swimming in them, a big bowl of cliché-come-true. They arrived at our apartment two days ago via UPS in a refrigerated foil package from Batch’s Best Family Farms in Chelan, Washington via ChefShop.com. They’re enormous; “so sweet and so cold” and I feel incredibly indulgent with my fuchsia-stained fingernails and belly full of ruined meals because I can’t quit snacking on them. I keep thinking back to when I first moved to New York, seven years ago now, and I was so broke all the time that cherries, with their inevitable eight-buck price tag for little more than two handfuls were just not something I could eat as often as I wanted, which you know was daily.
And now there’s this. Piles and piles of garnet marbles, such perfection in their original format that I felt guilty baking a significant lot of them into Ceres & Bacchus’s Clafoutis two nights ago–until I tried it. What a glorious dessert, more like a thick crepe than any cake I’ve ever had, and even better cold the next morning with a scoop of plain yogurt.
If you’ve never made cherry clafoutis before, this will be a treat for you. A real one-bowl show-off, and get this, if you’re going for tradition–and oh, you will once you learn how much easier it will make your life–you leave the pits in. Larousse Gastronomique and other traditionalists insist that the pits impart a almond flavor when baked within the custard, something no authentic clafoutis should be deprived of. Clafoutis is often made with plums or prunes (always soaked first in Armagnac), apples or blackberries, but some remind you that this is not, indeed, a clafoutis but a flognarde.
You know what I say? I say there are about twenty cherries left in the fridge, and its time for lunch. I hope you have a swell weekend.
Good for you! Your positive energy is infectious!
Well, since you’re all happy and stuff, maybe you should go help Luisa move instead of sitting around eating cherries!
; )
Happy but very BUSY, my friend. That is, unless she is making her crostada. Or stuffed tomatoes. Or has any cherries left, because I’ll soon be out. Call me!
You’ve got me salivating … Clafoutis is next on my baking list.
I’m so happy they arrived! Tim and Eliza (from ChefShop) brought some to the wedding on Monday, and our guests were groaning from all the goodness. The best surprise? Two days after the wedding, when I was starting to awaken from the exhaustion, I found three pounds of them tucked into our refrigerator drawer as a surprise. Ay god.
Celebrate, my dear. Life is good. Being alive is enough. But cherries on top of it? yes.
Ya know, I’m the same way. I’m convinced that if I talk about how happy I am and what I’m looking forward to (say a new job opportunity or starting some new free lance writing), it will suddenly go “poof” and I’ll be left with eyes sting for the smoke cloud my finicky happiness left behind. I think I’ll join you, Deb, in that proverbial bowl of cherries…why the heck not?! Sometimes embracing life, and it’s fruit, is what we should all do more often. Now, to visit ChefShop to partake in the goodness.
So, share the wealth! Recipe, please
wow, your pictues are so clear and inviting!
Yes do please share the wealth RECIPE PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!
You to have a good week-end , but please share the recipe,
thanks
Cherries and blueberries and watermelon are the really good things about summertime, in my opinion. I like the idea of leaving the pits in because that saves me a ton of work - and the whole cherries look more gorgeous.
The recipe is on Ceres & Bacchus. I used it almost exactly as is, only swapping the vanilla extract for almond and adding a bit more than 2 cups of cherries (she calls for plums, but 2 cups of almost any fruit can be used). Total perfection.
http://www.ceresandbacchus.com/archive.php?name=20070713
For me, it’s peaches. And they should appear at the farmers’ market in the next week or two.
Looks fab! And you know what?
I checked the recipe and that’s way close to a type of cobbler they make in the south. Huh. Who knew?
Maybe I’ll test it out with some nectarines from our tree…
I know what you mean about ruined dinner. Last week we (actually I because someone in this house does not like cherries) bought over 2 1/2 lbs. of cherries and they were gone in less than 48 hours. That is on top of the baggie that my Mother in law sent home with said cherry hater the day before that was gone with in a hour.
Ok thanks for the recipe. Also you mentioned that you leave the pits in
is that true or do I have to pit them?????
Did you use the rum with the cherries?
Joann — You don’t have to leave the pits in. I did. It is traditional, but not mandatory, especially if you’re making it for people who you don’t want to have to warn.
Beth — Yes. Of course. And I spilled a little extra in there, uh, for my homies or my liver or something.
Glad to have inspired so much glee. I made the clafoutis again last night, this time with blueberries because it’s my mom’s favorite. It’s also the easiest because the blueberries don’t need any prep whatsoever (and nobody breaks a tooth on a pit).
Looks to-die-for, as always!!
Just wanted to let you know though that your link to ChefShop (embedded in the text) is broken! Also, you spelled it wrong - with two “s”es instead of one. I hate to be the nitpicker, but I thought you’d probably want to know. :-)
I love cherries and have been eating them regularly now with the stained fingers and lips to prove it. That clafouti looks divine.
That recipe is very similar to a cobber my family has made for years, called the Lazy Man’s Cobbler.
The only differences are the ratio of flour, milk and sugar(The recipe I use is 1:1:1 - all one cup of each.) and my recipe does not use eggs. I melt the butter and it goes in the bottom of the baking dish, fruit goes on top of that and then the batter on top of that. No mixing. Comes out perfect every time.
Mmm…and there’s East Coast cherries galore, and your last photo of a half-eaten cherry is divine.
bee-oo-tiful.
Sweet Clafoutis!
Many happy times to you, now and always.
I’m glad that life is going so well! It’s funny how little things like paper airplanes permeate everything and make it better and more happy.
But where’s the RECIPE? My birthday is next week and cherries are on sale at the asian market *puppy eyes* everyone else seems to have it, am I missing something??
Mmm, those look delicious. Now that I live in Oregon instead of (Las Vegas) Nevada, I can experience the joys of REAL fresh fruit..my in-laws have a huge cherry tree in their backyard and there are pear orchards rampant. It’s great, and I think we finally just finished off the cherries we got from our pot-lucked 4th of July bbq. But I do have a peach, which is THE best thing about summertime other than my birthday. :)
summer - cherries - heaven on earth
but you’re going to napa
god how i love napa
my #1 fave restaurant is there
please go and send a detailed report
please…
let me live vicariously through you
it’s tra vigne in st. helena
do it do it do it
I love your site- you totally convinced me to try this! It’s such an easy, pretty recipe.
Pics of my results are on my site :)
Beautiful post, Deb. I think cherries are one of the most evocative of fruits — so many people have luscious memories associated with them. Enjoy Napa — we’ve gone there each summer for the past two years, and had glorious times driving the Silverado road, frolicking in Calistoga and eating really, really well. Are you already planning to go to Copia? We had a lovely day there last summer. We’re headed for Quebec this year, but I will definitely miss Napa.
you mean i don’t have to buy a cherry pitter to make this?! cheery clafoutis has been on my “to make” list all summer, but your edible images made it a “must make”!
Just a wonderful post!!!
I have never made cherry clafoutis, but i could do it now.
I have never eaten a single cherry without inspecting the color on the inside.
How else to learn how to know R E D !
Leaving the pits in? Do you spit ‘em out while munching or do they soften during cooking?
Fabulous! I love cherries and have been eating them all summer. I actually think I am beginning to resemble one!
And - your pictures are simply stunning!
What magnificent photos. I’ve discovered your blog quite recently, and to be honest I have a lot of blogs in my bloglines list and don’t always pay close attention to which one I’m looking at. But recently my attention keeps being arrested by your photos, and I always go back and check and say, “yep, this is the woman who just received a new macro lens…” I’m sure it’s not just the lens though, also the skill of the photographer. Anyway now I look forward to all your new posts, especially the photos!
This is so delicious! I’ve made it twice in the last 48 hours- once for a baby shower, and once for a family dinner. Yum!! Thanks, Deb!
I just planted 42 cherry trees for my 42nd birthday. There is nothing better. I will have them picked by a local school for fundraising. Life is good.
But the recipe…where is the recipe???
Recipe is here: http://www.ceresandbacchus.com/archive.php?name=20070713
well, that’s it deb, you chose Mary’s clafouti over mine, it’s obvious we can’t be friends anymore unless next time you share the cherry love! alright, yeah, you got me, I’m kidding. Damn I’m such a bad liar! clafoutis are kind of amazing aren’t they?
I can totally relate to things going so well that you are nervous to talk about them. I am experiencing just that right now and think that if I talk about it too much, I’ll jinx all the good.
Enjoy your cherries and enjoy your “peak”, as I call it! I hope your ride is long.
I just made this for a house party yesterday and it was a huge hit, thanks for sharing, Deb!
A friend of mine is throwing a potluck party next weekend, the theme of which is Muffin Tin Only! Anything you bring should be served (if not prepared) in a muffin tin. I think it’s great!
I’m wondering if anyone has any suggestions as to how this recipe can be adapted for small, cupcake-sized servings. I’m also wondering if it would be prudent to use cupcake liners at all, whether paper or foil.
Any ideas?
Hi, Deb. There seems to be some kind of an error on the Ceres & Bacchus page. The recipe now has question marks instead of values for some of the ingredients. I left a comment on the site, but it seems its creator has abandoned ship. Do you, by any chance, still have the recipe written down from a couple of years back? (And yes, I do realize that I am asking this question of a pregnant woman, one who just moved and has more than enough on her plate with her own blog, let alone filling in the gaps of someone else’s — forgive me!)
Hi, again. I ended up using this recipe that Garrett McCord posted over at Simply Recipes. I’d recommend it. There was much bowl-scraping here tonight. So thank you, Deb, but nevermind about that request.
D’oh — sorry I missed that comment. I will update the recipe with a few suggestions. Lots of excellent cherry clafoutis out there from other food bloggers, and I’m sure not a bad one among them.
Must be cherry season, eh? I’ve been playing the runaround trying to nail down that recipe, just like Jess! Noticed one of the commenters on the Ceres & Bacchus blog said she used the recipe. She included it in her post, though it says “adapted from.” Is it probably the same? I’ll probably try Vanilla Garlic’s or someone else’s (I have gobs of cherries to use up), but just thought I’d check…
I’ve read the raves of Clafoutis all over the blog world, so I decided to make this and see for myself. So.. I followed the link for this recipe and some of the ingredient amounts were distorted. So, I followed a link from the comment section provided by a person who blogged of making it and provided the recipe on her site. I figured she must have gotten it before the quantity distortion on the orig blogsite of Ceres and Bacchu’s. Bad idea, but my own fault. I should have looked at other recipes, just to insure the quantites were reasonably in line, and I didn’t do that. The flour amount was interpreted incorrectly. I made this using the 1 cup flour called for from the commenters site. Wrong! It should be 1/2 cup, at the very most. Mine turned out so thick, it was almost gummy. I do have to say in defense of the recipe, the flavor of this custard was fantastic, and I will definately be making this dish again, with the lesser amount of flour. I also added just a little almond extract to the vanilla, because I pitted the cherries and I love the complimentary flavor.
FYI..did you know that this custard is the base for all those (Word that ryhmes with Schmisquick) Impossible pies? It is! I thought the recipe looked familiar, but it’s been awhile since I used that product. Now that I know that, though, I have a whole lot of things I can do with this base custard recipe, with and without the sugar!