Cherry Clafoutis (Gluten-free, Grain-free)

I really missed baking during my Whole30.  As soon as my 30 days were up, I wanted to bake something with dairy (the first food I'm reintroducing) that was still gluten-free and on the lighter side.  I've found that it's much easier to make gluten-free versions of baked goods that call for a relatively small amount of flour as compared to the other ingredients.  So when I came across this classic cherry clafoutis from Saveur, which only calls for 3/4 cup flour, plus 6 eggs and over a cup of milk, I figured it would be a good candidate.  Guess what?  I was right.

A clafoutis is a French dessert that's kind of like a baked pancake.  And since this recipe has so many eggs, plus fruit and not that much sugar, I decided to just bite the bullet and make it for breakfast.  I made a triple berry almond clafoutis with regular flour this summer, and this one is even better!  It's light and custardy, almost like an airier version of flan studded with juicy cherries.  Bonus points include how easy it is to make, and the fact that you can bake it in a cast iron skillet.  Clafoutis is delicious warm straight from the oven, but you can also stash leftovers in the fridge and enjoy it chilled later in the evening or even the next day.  Ben and I each had a generous slice for breakfast, and I'm planning to serve the rest for dessert tonight.  In the morning it's perfect topped with powdered sugar alongside a cup of coffee, but for dessert I'll probably dress it up with either whipped cream or ice cream.

It's likely that you can make a paleo version of this by greasing the pan with ghee or coconut oil and subbing coconut milk for the regular milk.  I'll update this post once I've tried it--or if you try it first, let us know how it went in the comments!

The kirsch imparts a slightly boozy taste to the finished clafoutis, so feel free to omit it if that's not your thing.

Cherry Clafoutis
Yield: 6-8 servings
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 30 minutes

Ingredients (adapted from Saveur):

Butter, for greasing the pan
6 tablespoons coconut sugar (or regular sugar)
1 and 1/4 cups whole milk (grassfed if possible)
6 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla
Pinch of salt
2 tablespoons kirsch (optional)
2 tablespoons tapioca flour
1/4 cup coconut flour
1 pound (3 cups) pitted dark sweet cherries (I used frozen)

Powdered sugar or powdered coconut sugar, for serving*

*To powder coconut sugar, process it in a spice or coffee grinder until it's the texture of powdered sugar.

Preheat the oven to 325 and grease a 9-inch cast iron skillet or cake pan with butter.

If you have an immersion blender, you can mix your ingredients in any large bowl.  If not, mix them right in the pitcher of your blender.  Combine the coconut sugar, milk, eggs, vanilla, salt, and kirsch, and blend until smooth.  Add the tapioca flour and coconut flour, and blend again.  Let the batter sit for five minutes, then blend one more time.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and spread the cherries evenly on top.  Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the top of the clafoutis is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

Sprinkle the clafoutis with powdered sugar if desired, then slice into wedges and serve hot or warm.  My slices fell apart some, not because they stuck to the pan, but because they are just so custardy.  If you would like nicer slices, let the clafoutis cool to room temperature of even chill it for a bit before slicing.  I found a little extra powdered sugar on each serving made up for everything, and enjoyed mine warm.

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