Cherry clafoutis with almonds, honey and orange blossom

A few days ago I shared a savory clafoutis recipe; today I return to the more traditional version, although with some variations that make this cherry tart a delicious sweet, with a crunchy and very aromatic touch. This cherry clafoutis with almonds and orange blossom water is perfection in every bite, whether you leave the cherries with their stones or prefer them pitted.

You’ll see that it’s a very easy tart to prepare and perfect at this time of year, when cherries are at their peak sweetness. The biggest difficulty may be pitting the cherries, if you want to add them without stones. Traditionally they are placed whole because that way their flavor is more intense and they don’t release juice. But in the end the decision is always up to the person making the tart.

To make the final result more aromatic and crunchier than the original clafoutis, we add orange blossom water to the batter and scatter some sliced almonds on top. Lightly toasted they are incredible! By adding almond flour and baking the cherry tart in the Buyer deep stainless steel baking tray, we get a clafoutis with more body. And you’ll see that the orange blossom water leaves a wonderful aroma in the kitchen and gives an amazing note to this dessert.

You can enjoy it on its own, as is, but I love serving it warm with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream. You’ll see how this cherry clafoutis with almonds and orange blossom water is a delight.

Ingredients

• 500 g cherries (with or without stones, as you prefer)
• 3 large eggs
• 80 g honey (you can replace the honey with the same amount of brown sugar or panela)
• 100 g almond flour
• 50 g all-purpose flour
• 30 g melted butter
• 200 ml whole milk
• 100 ml heavy cream 35% fat
• 1 tablespoon orange blossom water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• A pinch of fine salt
• Sliced almonds (for decoration)
• Powdered sugar (optional, to taste)

Preparation

1. Wash the cherries, remove their stems and set aside. If you prefer to use them pitted, pit them. You can use the OXO cherry and olive pitter to go faster.
2. Preheat the oven to 180º C, top and bottom heat.
3. Place in the bowl of your KitchenAid mixer the eggs with the honey or brown sugar and beat with the balloon whisk until the mixture is foamy and has increased in volume.
4. Add the flours and salt and stir gently so everything mixes well.
5. Now add the melted butter, the milk, the cream, the vanilla extract and the orange blossom water and stir gently to incorporate all the ingredients.
6. Grease your Buyer deep rectangular stainless steel baking tray with a little butter or non-stick spray.
7. Place the cherries in the tray, distributing them evenly.
8. Pour the batter gently over the cherries and sprinkle the sliced almonds on top. That will give the clafoutis a delicious crunchy touch.
9. Place the tray in the oven and bake for about 35–40 minutes, until the surface is golden and the center is slightly soft.
10. Remove the clafoutis from the oven and let it cool a bit on a rack.
11. When it has cooled, dust a little powdered sugar on top before bringing it to the table.
12. And now comes the best part: serve the clafoutis and accompany it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a spoonful of whipped cream. You can also serve it plain. Enjoy!

Suggestions

• For a traditional clafoutis, cherries are usually added unpitted, because leaving the stone in gives a more intense flavor. But if you prefer a milder flavor and texture, you can use pitted cherries. To pit them faster, you can use the OXO cherry and olive pitter, which makes the job much easier.
• If you decide to accompany the clafoutis with vanilla ice cream, you can make it at home following the recipe you’ll find here.