Christmas

Poached Pear Clafoutis

by:
September 20, 2010
3.8
4 Ratings
Poached Pear Clafoutis
Photo by Mark Weinberg
  • Serves 6
Author Notes

The recipe for the clafoutis base was adapted from Lulu Grimes Cooks Book of Everything. I adapted it further (the original used cherries) to incorporate some beautiful pears I had picked up at the Farmer's Markets and poached in Pedro Ximenez Sherry. If you've never tried Pedro Ximenez I strongly suggest you do as it's a beautifully sweet drink that goes perfectly with desserts or on it's own. Poaching the pears in the Pedro Ximenez infused them with the deliciously raisin, coffee and treacle flavours inherit in the sherry and the addition of vanilla bean and cinnamon only added to the resulting deliciousness of the pears once poached. I then baked the pears into the clafoutis and served with a reduction of the poaching liquid. —Jennifer (Delicieux)

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • Poached Pears
  • 2 packham pears
  • 1 cup Pedro Ximenez or other sweet sherry
  • 2 cups water
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 vanilla bean
  • 1 cinnamon quill
  • Clafoutis
  • 60 grams (1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon) of plain flour
  • 75 grams (1/3 cup) of sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 250 milliliters (1 cup) full cream milk
  • 25 grams (1/4 stick) of unsalted butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons cream
Directions
  1. Poached Pears
  2. Place a saucepan large enough to hold the pears and liquid on a medium heat. Add the Pedro Ximinez, water, sugar cinnamon quill and pears.
  3. Split the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds into the pot and then add the bean to the poaching liquid.
  4. Poach the pears until they become tender but not so soft they fall apart. The time this will take depends on how ripe the pears are.
  5. Remove the pears from the poaching liquid and drain on some paper towel while you make the clafoutis.
  6. Meanwhile, add an additional 1/2 cup of sugar and increase the heat and bring the poaching liquid to a simmer and reduce the liquid into a syrup to pour over the clafoutis upon serving.
  1. Clafoutis
  2. Preheat the oven to 180degrees and grease the baking dish(es) you will use to bake the clafoutis.
  3. In a jug or separate bowl add the eggs,milk, cream and melted butter and beat together gently to combine.
  4. Sift the flour into a bowl and add the sugar. Make a well in the centre and gradually whisk in the liquid until the batter is smooth and free of lumps.
  5. Place the pears in the bottom of the baking dish(es) and pour the batter over the pears.
  6. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, or until the batter has risen and is golden on the edges.
  7. Serve with freshly whipped cream or ice cream along with a drizzle of the poaching liquid.
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  • Posie (Harwood) Brien
    Posie (Harwood) Brien
  • Ziggy
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7 Reviews

Posie (.
Posie (. December 8, 2013
180C - so use 350F. I don't think you need to peel the pears - but this is probably just personal taste! (I would peel them). You could cut the pears in whatever shape you like -- if you dice/cube them, you'd get smaller bits of pear strewn throughout the custard, but you could also halve them, and place them cut side down and pour the batter over them, which would also be nice.
 
Diane
Diane December 7, 2013
As others have said, there are missing details in this recipe! Do you peel the pears? Core them? Cube them? And the over... Is that 180C or 180F?!
 
Bascula
Bascula December 5, 2013
The recipe refers to 'pears' - are the pears ever peeled? cored? cut into pieces? This seems to me a major omission - please help!
 
msigur
msigur December 8, 2013
It looks like the pears are peeled, cored, and cut into quarters.
 
Posie (.
Posie (. December 4, 2013
Ziggy, the texture of a clafoutis is like a cross between a custard and pancake -- eggy, but less loose than a custard, so quite similar to a Yorkshire pudding. Depending on the ratio used, some clafoutis are a bit more cakey and pancake-like (like a Dutch baby), and some are more flan-like (like a thick crepe). Either way, delicious!
 
Ziggy
Ziggy December 4, 2013
Righto, so a French food novice here; could someone tell me what the texture of a clafoutis is like please? At the risk of sounding like an absolute heathen it looks a bit like a Yorkshire pudding...
 
ATG117
ATG117 December 4, 2013
Curious: How is it that the food52 pics sometimes look so different from the original? here, the texture of the finished product looks completely different. I would have never known it was resume recipe...