A clafoutis is a dessert made with fruit baked in a creamy custard-like batter. This Plum clafoutis is a wonderful combination of tart fruits in a sweet custard. A surprisingly simple and easy dessert that takes just 10 minutes to prep and 40 minutes to bake.
Don't you just love fresh plums in season during summer? They are so meaty with beautiful dark skin. I love eating them as fresh fruit, but my kids find them a bit too tart. So, I often try to use them in desserts like my upside down plum cake or peach-plum jam, and this clafoutis has now become a new family favorite.
Table of Content
What is clafoutis?
Pronounced as (Kla-foo-tee). A clafoutis is a classic French custard-based dessert usually made with fresh seasonal fruits. Traditionally, black cherries are layered in a pie dish and covered with a thick creamy custardy filing similar to flan. Then, baked until just set. A clafoutis can be served at room temperature, warm in winter or cold in summer. A very versatile dessert that does not need any accompaniment and can be served on its own.
It is said that only a custard-based filling with black cherries is a clafoutis anything else is called a Flaugnarde. This means this dessert would technically be called a plum Flaugnarde. A Flaugnarde can be made with peaches, apples, and berries, such as blueberries or raspberries. And yet, I've only seen it featured in restaurants as a clafoutis, which is why I decided to call it a plum Clafoutis.
Why make this recipe?
- If you love custard-based desserts then this one is for you with fruits.
- The recipe is one of the easiest dessert recipes with no special equipment required.
- It really involves just chopping the fruit, blend the custard, and baking them together.
- A perfect recipe to bookmark when you need to make dessert but are short on prep time.
- I usually only make these with fresh plums, cherries, or Blackberries. You can also try peaches, apricots, apples, or even figs.
Ingredients and substitutes
- Plums - Clafoutis is usually made with fresh fruits in seasons. But, you can use frozen. Canned fruits are usually too soft and too sweet which makes them very jammy when baked.
- Cream - Makes for a rich, creamy custard base. I have also tried buttermilk and I loved it very much.
- Milk - It's best to use whole milk so the custard sets when cooled to room temperature.
- Eggs - Always use large size eggs when baking unless specified. The size of eggs varies significantly these days. So as a guide, one large egg weighs between 50 to 60 grams
- Sugar - I prefer to use white sugar so it won't alter the color of my base. And yet feel free to use the same amount of light brown sugar. I would not recommend dark brown sugar.
Step by step instructions
- Preheat the oven at 325°F/ 165°C/ Gas Mark 3
- Pan - Generously brush the baking pan with soft room temperature butter. For this recipe, your can use either a 9-inch pie pan or an 8-inch cast-iron skillet. Or as I am a 7 x 9-inch baking dish. Set aside.
- Fruit - Wash plums and pat dry. Cut each fruit in half then slice each half into 6 slices approximately.
- Custard - Place all remaining ingredients in a food processor. Blend until smooth and well combined.
Pro tip - blend until just combined, as we do not want to activate the gluten in the flour. You can also do this with a whisk in a bowl. Ensure you have no lumps.
- Assemble - Arrange plums in the dish as desired. Sprinkle with sugar. Gently pour the custard batter over the plums.
Pro tip - I use the back of my spoon to soften the pour so it won't ruin my fruit arrangement. - Bake - Bake on the middle rack for about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely.
Pro tip - when done the batter will look set with not jiggly and with a slight puff. This puff will settle as it cools - Serving - A clafoutis can be served warm, at room temperature, or cold. Serve on its own or dusted with powdered sugar.
You can also serve with a scoop of ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.
More custard based desserts
- Creme caramel flan or Apricot flan
- Creme Brûlée, Apricot creme brûlée, or Pumpkin creme brûlée
- Bavarian cream, Strawberry bavarian cake
- Blackberry panna cotta , strawberry panna cotta
- Panna cotta tart - blueberry, blackberry, strawberry
- Blackberry cheesecake
Frequently asked questions
A clafoutis is a custard-based batter made with milk, cream, and eggs over fresh fruits. All these are perishable ingredients. So yes, you need to keep any clafoutis in the fridge once cooled unless you plan to serve it soon.
Yes, you can bake the clafoutis in advance. Cool it and leave it in the fridge. If you plan to serve it at room temperature, remember to leave it out for an hour before serving. And if you want to serve it warm, you can reheat it in the oven for just a few minutes before serving.
Any dessert with a custard-based filling such as this plum clafoutis needs to be baked gently and just until set. If the custard-mixture dried out then it will have a cracked appearance. So, take it out of the oven when it still has a slight jiggle in the center. The remaining heat in the pan is enough to help it set.
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Printable Recipe
Plum Clafoutis Recipe
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Ingredients
Custard Batter
- ½ cup (120 ml) Whipping cream
- 2 cup (470 ml) Whole milk
- 3 Eggs large
- ½ cup (100 g) Sugar
- 2 tbsp Cornstarch
- ¼ cup (30 g) All purpose flour
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven at 325°F/ 165°C/ Gas Mark 3
- Pan - Generously brush the baking pan with soft room temperature butter. For this recipe, your can use either a 9-inch pie pan or an 8-inch cast-iron skillet. Or as I am a 7 x 9-inch baking pan. Set aside.
- Fruit - Wash plums and pat dry. Cut each fruit in half then slice each half into 6 slices approximately.
- Custard - Place all remaining ingredients in a food processor. Blend until smooth.Pro tip - blend until just combined, as we do not want to activate the gluten in the flour. You can also do this with a whisk in a bowl but ensure you have no lumps.
- Assemble - Arrange plums in the dish as desired. Sprinkle with sugar. Gently pour the custard batter over the plums. Pro tip - I use the back of my spoon to soften the pour so it won't ruin my fruit arrangement.
- Bake - Bake on the middle rack for about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool completely.Pro tip - when done the batter will look set with not jiggly and with a slight puff. This puff will settle as it cools
- Serving - A clafoutis can be served warm, at room temperature, or cold. Serve on its own or dusted with powdered sugar. You can also serve with a scoop of ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.
Recipe Notes
- If using frozen fruits make sure to drain them well otherwise excess liquid will not set the custard.Â
- Prepare the fruits just before you are going to cook this will prevent them from releasing too many juices and in some cases prevent oxidization.Â
- Make sure there are no lumps in the custard. Lumps will cook like little dough balls in the custard which will not be smooth.Â
- Pouring the custard filling over the back of a spoon will ensure the arrangement of fruit remains intact.Â
- Bake until the custard is just set. Overbaked custard will crack and become dry as it cools.Â
- If the custard looks still moist when baked, it's ok. As long as it is not wet with liquid it will set when cooled.Â
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Cathleen
Wow, I can't say that I have ever tried a recipe with plums before, but this one looks so good I am definitely thinking about it now! Thanks so much for the recipe, bookmarked for later 🙂
Anjali
Yum!! I love clafoutis, and this version with plums is so perfect for summer! Can't wait to make this soon!