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Whole-Cherry Clafoutis

posted by Liz Berg on July 26, 2022 (updated 10/5/22)

This Whole-Cherry Clafoutis is a simple, rustic French Dessert! If you’re not a fan of fresh cherries, adapt it with your favorite fresh fruit. A peach clafoutis is another phenomenal dessert!

With sweet, juicy red cherries in season, it was time to dig out my favorite Clafoutis Recipe. It had been almost 10 years since I made this lovely treat.

Slice of cherry clafoutis in front of the white ceramic baking dish.

Table of Contents hide

1 Why You’ll Love Clafoutis

2 Ingredient Notes:

3 Expert Tips

4 Frequently Asked Questions

5 You May Also Like:

6 Whole-Cherry Clafoutis

Why You’ll Love Clafoutis

It’s the perfect way to showcase delicious summer fruit!
A clafoutis is a simple cake that doesn’t require much effort. The only time-consuming step is removing the cherry pits, which is an optional step.
A cross between a cake and a pudding, this French dessert is a classic!

Cherry Clafoutis ingredients with labels on a sheet pan.

Ingredient Notes:

Sweet Fresh Cherries – Sweet Bing or Red Cherries, Yellow Rainier Cherries, or even frozen cherries (not defrosted) all work well.
Eggs – Use large eggs brought to room temperature for easier incorporation.
Sugar – Regular, white granulated sugar
Salt – Table Salt. Salt is a flavor enhancer and is necessary for dessert recipes as well as savory recipes.
Vanilla Extract – Use real vanilla extract, never artificial.
Flour – All-purpose flour
Whole Milk – If you don’t have whole milk on hand mix up ¾ cup of 2% milk with ¼ cup of half and half. Measure out what’s needed for your recipe.
Heavy Cream – 36% milk fat

Overhead view of cherry clafoutis in a shallow white souffle dish.

Expert Tips

Pit or don’t pit the cherries, the choice is up to you! I sent this cake with my oldest to share at a BBQ with his beer-drinking contemporaries. Providing bowls in which to politely place the extracted pits was not a viable option. I could easily see the party deteriorating into a pit-spitting contest!
PRO-Tip: Cherries are the classic addition to clafoutis, but other stone fruits, pears, mixed berries, prunes soaked in Armagnac and other rehydrated dried fruits are delicious options. Griottes, or sour cherries in syrup, may also be drained and used.
I used sweet red or Bing cherries, but Ranier cherries are excellent, too.
PRO-Tip: If you’re unsure if your clafoutis is done, insert a sharp knife in the center. If it comes out clean, the cake is done.
The classic garnish is a simple sprinkle of powdered sugar. Add this right before slicing and serving or it will be absorbed by any moisture in the cake.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Do You Pronounce Clafoutis?

Clafoutis is pronounced: kla-foo-TEE.

What is Clafoutis?

A clafoutis is a simple, rustic French cake, or as Dorie Greenspan describes it, “a firm, eggy, flour-based pudding.” It’s a country dessert from the Limousin region is made by topping a layer of fruit with a batter, then baking.
Traditionally made with cherries, plums, peaches, mixed berries and pears are popular alternatives. You may also use frozen cherries, but do not defrost.
The name comes from the Old French word, claufir, which means to hold in place with nails. The cherries’ appearance looks like nails in the cake.

How Do You Serve a Clafoutis?

Traditionally, it’s served warm, but it’s also delicious cold or at room temperature. Often served with a dollop of whipped cream, a simple dusting of powdered sugar is more common.

Should You Remove the Cherry Pits?

Dorie Greenspan’s whole-cherry clafoutis recipe does not use pitted cherries. She said the theory is that unpitted cherries retain more flavor. I prefer using pitted cherries, but if you don’t remove the pits, make sure to have small bowls at the table to collect them.

How Do You Store Clafoutis?

You can store a clafoutis at room temperature for up to 2 days. Refrigerate covered for up to 4 days. Clafoutis do not freeze well since the fruit will give off too much juice as it defrosts.