Apple Clafouti

Apple Clafouti is the other Julia Child recipe from last month's Christmas Meme. This is also from Mastering the Art of French cooking, but it's the one from Volume 2. She has clafoutis in both volumes.

It seems that the original French name was "clafoutis" - singular, but with an "s" at the end. John Thorne, in Outlaw Cook, has a nice chapter on clafouti - specifically, on making/eating them for breakfast. Here is his description:

Clafoutis (more and more spelled "clafouti" these days - perhaps because the "s" makes the word look plural to American eyes) is usually considered a dessert. From the Limousin region of France, it is traditionally made by filling the bottom of a buttered baking dish with stemmed but unpitted black cherries, covering these with a batter, and baking this in an oven. The result is a custardy, slightly puffed, lightly browned confection, dotted with pieces of the soft, fresh fruit. It is eaten warm or cool, dusted with powdered sugar."

This is a wonderful, simple dessert. It's rich but not cloying, and leftovers are perfect for breakfast - all that egg, you know.

Here's Julia's recipe:

Apple Clafouti

1/2 cup currants
1/4 cup dark rum
1 stick of butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
6-7 apples, peeled and sliced
3 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
enough light cream added to the remaining rum to make ½ cup
1/4 t. cinnamon

1. Mix currants and rum and let stand.
2. Spread half the butter and half the sugar in a jelly roll pan. Add the sliced apples. Cover with the rest of the butter and sugar. Bake 25 minutes at 375°. Scrape into a glass baking dish (i.e. 10” Pyrex pie plate). [This part can be done ahead of time.]
3. Drain the currants (reserving the rum) and pour half the rum over the apples.
4. Beat eggs and sugar until thick and yellow. Add flour, rum/cream and cinnamon. Add currants. Pour over apples and bake at 375° for 25 minutes.