French Love + Stone Fruit Clafoutis
Stone Fruit Clafoutis - Global Dish - Stephanie Arsenault
When I was 19, I went to France. All by myself. I went there to take an immersive food writing program in the Languedoc {now part of the Occitanie region}, and there, I fell in love. *Cue Beauty & the Beast music...*
I fell in love with French food, the culture, the wine. Oh, the wine! I tasted blanc de blanc right out of the barrel in the town from which it originated. I went to a festival dedicated to hazelnuts {many local members of government were, in fact, dressed up as hazelnuts}. I ate paella for the first time from a street vendor’s giant pan, and then ate figs right off the tree. I fell in love with traveling by myself and felt like a European explorer.
I just, well, I just fell in love with it all.
Stone Fruit Clafoutis - Global Dish - Stephanie Arsenault
Of course, much of the food I fell for was complicated. It’s French food, after all. It’s known for requiring a long list of ingredients, for taking hours to prepare and cook {beef bourguignon, anyone? Ugh, Julia Child made it all look so easy.}. Many of the best French dishes, however, are simple. Even the desserts – sacrebleu!
This clafoutis, in particular, is deceivingly easy to make, and requires just a handful of ingredients; probably ones you’ve already got on hand.
A classic French dessert, clafoutis is made of fresh fruit and a creamy flan-like batter that is baked up and served warm or cold. Sweet, pitted black cherries are traditionally used in it, but really you can use whatever fruit you’ve got on hand – or what’s in season. Just use enough fruit to cover the bottom of your baking dish {a pie or similar-sized oven-proof dish}; there’s no specific amount of fruit in the recipe because it really depends on the size and shape of the dish. So just use your, uh, fruit discretion, and enjoy. Bon appétit!
Stone Fruit Clafoutis - Global Dish - Stephanie Arsenault
Stone Fruit Clafoutis - Global Dish - Stephanie Arsenault
Stone Fruit Clafoutis
Makes 1, serves 6-8
INGREDIENTS:
¾ cup + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
3 large eggs
1 cup milk {1-2%}
½ cup half and half
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 peach, pitted and sliced
1 plum, pitted and sliced
1 nectarine, pitted and sliced
1 apricot, pitted and sliced
Butter, for baking dish
INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and position the baking rack to the middle of the oven.
In a medium bowl, whisk flour, sugar and sea salt; set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, half and half, and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients and whisk until smooth.
Take about a teaspoon of butter and spread it around a pie dish {or similar sized dish} using a paper towel. Now, place the sliced fruit around the base of the dish, and then pour the batter over top.
Bake in the preheated oven for 45-55 minutes, or until the top of the clafoutis is golden brown, and the middle is almost set {it is a-okay if it’s a little bit jiggly!}.
Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool to room temperature; once cooled, cover the clafoutis loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Serve at room temperature or cold, sprinkled with a little icing sugar, if desired.
Stone Fruit Clafoutis - Global Dish - Stephanie Arsenault
Stone Fruit Clafoutis - Global Dish - Stephanie Arsenault