Cherry Clafoutis

I discovered this recipe in the book "Stir," by Jessica Fechtor. If you haven't heard of Jessica, I strongly recommend this book. It is a beautifully written and inspiring account of how one woman was able to heal herself through her deep love of cooking.The book is filled with recipes for foods that have special meaning and deep rooted memories for the author. This recipe for Cherry Clafoutis is exceptional. 

1 tablespoon softened unsalted butter for greasing the pan

Granulated sugar for dusting the pan

2 cups fresh cherries, pitted

1 cup whole milk

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 tablespoon kirsch

¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

Confectioner’s sugar for finishing

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Grease a 9-inch baking dish, cake pan, or pie plate with the 1 tablespoon butter. (Use the entire tablespoon so that the coating is thick.) Dust the sides and bottom of the dish with granulated sugar and shake out any excess.

            Put the cherries into the baking dish and shake into a single layer. Combine the milk, brown sugar, baking powder, eggs, vanilla extract, kirsch, salt and flour in the jar of a blender and blend on high speed for 1 minute. Pour the batter over the cherries, and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the Clafoutis puffs up and turns golden brown, and a tested inserted into the center comes out clean.

            Serve at room temperature or chilled, dusted with confectioners sugar.

Serves 6.