Combining fresh ripe pears and blueberries in a lightly spiced clafoutis batter this dessert, or breakfast, or even breakfast for dessert has all of the best things from summer and fall. This classic French dish is easily modified to suit your whims and likes- brighten it with lemon, make it gluten free, make it with peaches or apples, there are so many possibilities for your clafoutis (kla-foo-tee), but let’s start here.
If you love custards and pancakes and fruit then Clafoutis is one of those dishes, once discovered, you wonder how you managed to survive without it. But perhaps you haven’t and didn’t quite know it. IF your making this version with pears and blueberries purists would say you still haven’t tried clafoutis because clafoutis must be made with black cherries- no not just cherries, the red sort will not do, it must be the dark variety. Perhaps this is technically a flaugnardes but if your struggle to pronounce clafoutis then… well.
FAQ
How do I know when my clafoutis is done cooking?
To be absolutely sure your clafoutis is baked through use a thermometer- it should be 160F. Or if you want to do it the old fashioned way the edges should be golden to dark golden brown and just pulling away from the edges and the middle should be set, a knife inserted into the center should come out clean. This recipe and the corresponding cooking times calls for a 10 1/2 inch cast iron skillet, if you use a smaller pan it will take longer, a larger probably slighly less.
Does clafoutis need to be refrigerated?
If it takes you more than three hours to eat, and you want to be absolutely safe, yes. It will keep for several days in the refrigerator.
Can you reheat Clafoutis?
Clafoutis or flaugnardes are traditionally served just warm so in the unlikely event you find yourself with leftovers you and reheat them at 300F until just warm.
Tips and suggestions for your best pear clafoutis
make the batter ahead: you can make the batter, less the fruit/wine syrup from the pears, up to a day ahead. you can also make the batter in a blender
the sweetness of the fruit matters, I like fruit forward less sweet desserts- if you like sweeter sweets add more sugar. If your pears are not buttery ripe and sweet, add more sugar.
I use 1/4 cup sugar plus the sweet white wine. Most recipes call for 1/2 sugar some up to 3/4 cup.
what do I mean by sweet white wine?
for me, this means a fruit forward California Rosé with an ABV (alcohol by volume) of 11.5%. As a general rule, fortified or dessert wines aside, the lower the ABV the higher the sugar content. A sweet Riesling or Muscato d’asti would work here too. Dessert wines would also work but the resulting dessert is going to be considerably boozier – I might cut the amount down to 1/4 cup if using a fortified or dessert wine. Many traditional french pear clafoutis recipes call for pear brandy or pear eau-de-vie instead of sweet white wine.
Cast Iron Pear and Blueberry Clafoutis
Equipment
- 10 1/2 inch cast iron pan
- whisk or blender
Ingredients
- 3 large eggs
- 1/4 cup half and half
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup all purpose flour
- 2 ripe pears peeled and pared and cut into thick wedges I did six wedges per pear for the clafoutis pictured
- 1-1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries washed and picked clean of stems (can substitute frozen)
- 1/4 cup sugar or to taste, see tips above
- 1/2 cup sweet white wine such as riesling or a sweeter rosé)
- 3/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice I use the penzeys, you can substitute cinnamon, nutmeg, or a mix of the two
Instructions
- Make the first part of the batter by whisking together the eggs, half and half, flour, salt, and vanilla. whisk until as smooth as possible, some tiny lumps may remain. allow to rest at least 30 minutes or up to overnight. this can also be done in a blender
- While the batter mixture rests combine prepared pears and blueberries, the sugar, the pumpkin pie spice, and the sweet white wine in a medium bowl. toss gently (like a turn or twto combine and allow to sit for at least thirty minutes or up to an hour.
- prepare the cast iron or other stovetop and oven proof 10 1/2” dish by buttering and flouring (I just buttered)
- pre-heat the oven to 400F
- drain the liquids from the pear mixture and add those liquids to the batter, whisking again to get it as smooth as possible
- over medium-low heat on the stovetop preheat the cast iron
- add half the batter to the preheated cast iron and allow to cook until the batter is just set, remove from heat and place the pears and blueberries in the pan, top with the second half of the batter, sprinkle with a little more pie spice and bake on the center rack for 20-25 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 160F and the batter is set and golden.
- serve warm or at room temperature. top with confectioners sugar if desired
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