Anytime Gourmet: Baking even a non-baker can do

I bought the Grand Central Baking Book a few years ago per the recommendation of a friend who also loves to bake. I am always inspired by their recipes – unique and never too difficult to make. I have passed by the clafouti page many times, never paying much attention to the recipe until today. I have lots of cherries I need to use up and this recipe uses 1 ½ cups. I decided to give it a try. The ingredients are mixed in a blender and poured in a pie pan, then cherries are plopped on top. The whole thing gets covered with sugar, and in the oven it goes. What an easy dessert! And perfect for a last minute dinner party. If you don’t have cherries, try berries, nectarines, peaches, plums, or a combination.

Grand Central describes it as, “a rustic baked dessert somewhere between a custard and a soufflé…provides a great contrast of textures, too, with a slightly chewy cake, soft baked fruit, and crunchy cracked sugar shards on top.”

A cherry pitter makes the task of pitting 1 ½ cups of cherries a breeze. They are fairly inexpensive and I have used mine more than I thought I would.

Clafouti (Adapted from Grand Central Baking Book by Davis & Jackson, 2009)

Serves 4

Ingredients
2/3 cup whole milk (I used 2% and it worked great)
8 teaspoons plus ¼ cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon almond extract (Use vanilla if you are using a different fruit)
¼ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 ½ cups fresh pitted cherries (or 1 cup halved, pitted prunes, soaked in ¼ cup brandy or Armagnac)

Make It

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a blender, combine milk, 8 teaspoons sugar, eggs, vanilla, salt, and flour. Blend until smooth, about 30 seconds.