From the Limousin region of central France, where wild black cherries (griottes or merises) ripen in late June. The dish is documented from the 19th century as a peasant use for the brief glut of fruit; the name comes from Occitan clafir, to fix or fill. Outside Limousin, versions made with other fruits (plums, apricots) are technically called flaugnardes, not clafoutis.
Limousin (Auvergne-adjacent) farmer's batter pudding — black cherries baked in a flan-like batter, traditionally with pits left in (the pit's almond note flavors the batter). Pitting it makes it a flaugnarde.
A flat baked custard pancake — eggs, milk, a little flour, sugar — with whole black cherries, stems removed but pits left in, scattered through the batter. Comes out puffed at the edges and golden, sinking slightly as it cools. Eaten warm, dusted with confectioners' sugar. The pits matter: they leak a faint almond note from the kernel into the custard during baking.
Pits stay in by tradition, not stubbornness: cherry pits contain amygdalin, which yields trace benzaldehyde during baking — the almond perfume that makes a clafoutis taste of more than custard. Pitting the cherries also bleeds juice into the batter, and the dessert turns purple and weeps. Modern restaurants warn diners; home cooks in Limousin still leave them in.
Variations
Clafoutis aux cerises (cherries, with pits — the original); flaugnarde (any other fruit: apple, pear, plum); modern restaurant version sieves out the pits and adds amaretto for the missing almond note.
On the Palate
Where Wild Cherry Clafoutis sits in the French flavor cloud
Whisk the batter dead smooth and bake it just to a trembling set — a clafoutis is a loose custard, so it should puff and turn golden yet stay barely firm at the center, never dried out.
Ingredients
How it's made
5 steps · 52 min
- 13 min
Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F). In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs and sugar until pale and frothy, about 2 minutes.
- 24 min
Gradually add in the flour, whisking constantly to avoid lumps, followed by the milk, creating a smooth batter.
Watch outThe finished batter should ribbon off the whisk smooth and lump-free, about the thickness of pouring cream.
- 33 min
Butter a baking dish generously, then scatter pitted cherries evenly across the bottom, creating a single layer.
- 42 min
Pour the batter over the cherries, ensuring they are evenly distributed and submerged slightly in the batter.
Watch outPour gently so the cherries stay spread out and just peek above the surface, not piled together.
- 540 min
Bake in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, until the clafoutis is puffed and golden, and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
Watch outIt's ready when it's puffed high and golden and a skewer in the center comes out clean; it will settle a little as it cools.
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