Clafoutis Style Cherry Bake

Clafoutis Style Cherry Bake:

Cherries baked in a batter

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Ingredients:

2 cups washed, pitted cherries
4 T sugar (use by the tablespoon, not all at once)
3 eggs
3/4 c flour
1/2 c milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 T butter

Utensils:

9 1/2" ceramic tart pan or  9" glass pie pan (place a flat and rimmed pizza or cookie tray under the pan so no spilling)
Parchment paper (circle cut and placed in pan to avoid extra clean up due to sticking)
Medium to large bowl
Measuring cups and spoons
Whisk or fork
Small cutting knife and board


Technique:

In a parchment paper-lined tart pan, coat 1 T butter on the insides of the pan and on the circle of parchment paper, then sprinkle 1 Tablespoon of sugar evenly over the paper.

Rinse the cherries in a little white vinegar and water to clean them, remove the stems, and then on a cutting board, with a small knife, slice the sides, tops and bottoms from the cherries around the pit.  I place the cherry pieces in a medium bowl as I go, and discard the pits.

Place the rinsed, de-stemmed, and pitted cherries evenly over the sugar in the tart pan.  Sprinkle 1 Tablespoon of sugar over the cherries.

In a mixing bowl, with a whisk, whisk together 3 eggs, 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, 1 Tablespoon of sugar, 1/2 cup of milk, and 3/4 cup all-purpose unbleached flour, in that order.  Stir until blended, but do not over work the batter.

Pour the batter mixture over the cherries.

With 1 Tablespoon of butter, cut into small pieces and dot over the batter, add a sprinkle of 1 Tablespoon of sugar.

Wearing hand protection and using pot holders, place in the center of a pre-heated oven at 375 degrees for 40 minutes.  Using hand protection, carefully remove from oven and place on a cooling rack.  Check to make sure it's set by inserting a table knife in the center and the knife comes out clean.  Cool for at least 10 minutes.  Optionally, sprinkle confectioners sugar on top before serving.

Notes:
I like to use unbleached flour, free-range eggs, and organic dairy whenever possible.

When using fruits such as plums, apples, pears or berries, this flan-like dish is called a Flaugnarde.

The pronunciations of Clafoutis and Flaugnarde can be found at http://www.forvo.com