Travel France from your kitchen: clafoutis recipe

Clafoutis emerged in the Limousin region during the 19th Century, the name probably deriving from the Occitan word 'clafir' meaning 'to fill'.

Today, it is often made with a range of fruits; plums, apricots, or pears in which case it is sometimes called a 'millard'. It is best with luscious black cherries, however.

It can either be made in a large oval baking dish or in individual ramekins. Traditionally the stones are left in the cherries but modern recipes tend to remove them.

Serves 6-8 people

Ingredients

• 600g of cherries
• 40g melted salted butter (plus more to grease the dish)
• 4 eggs
• 20cl milk
• 100g plain flour
• 60g sugar
• 1 sachet of vanilla sugar
• A pinch of salt

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 210 degrees. De-stone the cherries.
2. Mix the flour, sugar, salt, and vanilla sugar. Gradually add the eggs, milk and melted butter.
3. Grease the baking dish or individual ramekins, add the cherries and then pour the batter over the top.
4. Bake at 210 degrees for 10 minutes and then at 180 degrees for 20 minutes. Serve warm or cold.