French Pear Clafoutis
A clafouti (or clafoutis as it is also spelled) is a rustic, traditional French cake. The texture is unlike a regular crumbly sponge, however - it’s more like a big, delightful, fluffy pancake. It’s delicious as a dessert, but also great for serving a crowd during brunch.
The classic way to make this cake is with cherries - a perfect late-summer treat. However, it can be made a wide variety of ways with a variety of fruits; my personal favorite is with pears. Pears are in season in the autumn, so it’s the perfect time to bake one. You can’t simply set it and forget it, however - there are a few tricks necessary to pulling it off.
Much like a crepe, the ingredients should be combined in a blender. It gives the batter a wonderful aeration that keeps the cake light. Most importantly, you must make sure your cake pan or pie plate is heat safe, as you’ll cook a thin layer of batter on the stove to set. This ensures that the cake cooks all the way through properly, as the juice from fresh fruit will otherwise sink, creating the dreaded soggy bottom.
How to Make a Pear Clafoutis
Ingredients
3 medium to large pears - soft variety, such as bosc
1 1/4 c milk
1/3 c granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 Tbs vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 c flour
Butter or baking spray for greasing the pan
Tools
Vegetable peeler
Paring knife
Cutting board
Blender
Mixing spoon
9 inch cake pan or Pyrex pie plate
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
Peel and slice your pears. For fancy presentation, slice very thinly. If in a hurry, simply slice in halves or quarters. Set aside.
Add all ingredients except the pears and buttter/spray to your blender. Cover and blend on high speed for 1 minute.
Grease your cake pan or pyrex.
Pour about a quarter inch worth of batter into the bottom of your cake pan/pyrex. Set it on a stove burner on medium heat and cook until the batter is set - it will start to form bubbles all over. It should take about 2 minutes.
Remove the cake pan from the heat, and arrange the pears on top of the batter. For halves, spread them face down. For thinner slices, arrange in a circular fan shape.
Pour the rest of the batter on top of the pears. And smooth the top with a spoon. If they peek through that’s alright.
Place in the center of the oven and bake for an hour, or until nicely browned and a toothpick stuck into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly before serving - the clafoutis will fall slightly. Top with a dusting of powdered sugar.
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