Recently I cooked at the Chicago Botanic Garden as part of their ongoing Garden Chefs Series. The Garden is a true gem, an oasis of tranquility where I spotted an enormous Blue Heron and a teeny chipmunk on my golf cart trip to the demonstration kitchen.
I made a few recipes using Italian plums, luscious right now and perfect for all kinds of casual desserts. Today I’ll share my clafoutis, a rustic French dessert traditionally made with cherries but generally terrific with any fruit all season long. It’s a kind of cakey flan, or custardy cake, but it’s also compared to the classic German pancake because it puffs up tall before settling down, creamy but with a golden edge.
And like last year, when I overbought limes for the vinaigrette in my grilled peach salad, and came up with a lime curd and blueberry tart, I also went a little crazy on the plums. Thus, I’ll be posting a plum tart and blueberry plum crisp someday soon, sort of a plum fest. Enjoy.
Plum Clafoutis
Serves eight
12 plums(about 10 ounces), pitted and halved
¼ cup sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1½ cups half-and-half
1 teaspoon vanilla
Confectioners sugar for dusting
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously butter a 10-inch round baking dish and set aside.
Whisk together flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl. In another bowl, whisk together eggs, half-and-half and vanilla. Pour into flour mixture and stir to combine. Toss in plums. Pour batter into baking dish and arrange plums evenly. Bake in the center of the oven until puffed and golden, about 35 to 40 minutes.
Cool slightly, then sprinkle with confectioners sugar and cut into wedges.
Photo and recipe compliments of Janine MacLachlan, RusticKitchen.com. All rights reserved.