by Daniel Galmiche from French Brasserie Cookbook (Watkins Publishing)
Photography: Yuki Sugiura
Originating in the Limousin region, clafoutis soon spread throughout France to become a popular dessert in brasseries all over the country. Traditionally, a clafoutis is made with cherries, but the summer brings an abundance of fruit – tender apricots, juicy plums, fat cherries and wild blackberries, all warm from the sun and begging to be eaten. You can make a delicious clafoutis with any of these, but my favourite is raspberry. The sweetness of the berries and the zing of the lime zest send your taste buds twirling!
Preparation time 35 minutes
Cooking time 25 minutes
Ingredients
250–280g/9–10oz/2–2¼ cups firm raspberries
zest of 1 lime
125g/4½oz/½ cup caster sugar 50g/2oz butter, half softened & half melted
85g/3oz/²⁄3 cup plain flour
a pinch of salt
1 egg
1 egg yolk
300ml/10½fl oz/scant 1¼ cups full fat milk
Method
Preheat the oven to 180˚C/350˚F/gas 4. Put the raspberries, lime zest and
2 tablespoons of the sugar in a bowl. Mix gently, then set aside to macerate for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, grease a 24 x 16 x 6cm /9½ x 6¼ x 21½ in baking dish or clafoutis dish (an oval earthenware dish) with the softened butter and sprinkle with another 3 tablespoons of the sugar. Carefully shake the sugar around the dish to make sure it coats the inside.
Sift the flour and salt into a mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, egg yolk and remaining sugar, then slowly add the mixture to the flour and mix until incorporated and smooth. Slowly add the milk, stirring until the batter has the consistency of a crêpe batter, then add the melted butter and mix until combined.
Put the raspberries in the clafoutis dish and mix to release the juices. Pour the batter over the raspberries and bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes until golden brown and set. A tip of a sharp knife inserted into the centre should come out clean and dry. Remove from the oven and serve.
CHEF’S TIP: It is also fun to make this dessert in individual 150ml/5fl oz/²⁄3 cup ramekin dishes, just reduce the cooking time to 10–12 minutes.
