Easy clafoutis

For ➏-➑

30 g unsalted butter*

400 g cherries, pitted**

75 g wheat flour***

1 pinch of salt

65 g white caster sugar****

3 medium eggs

30 cl whole milk*****

2 tbs powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 190 °C. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently. Grease the cake tin (Ø 24 cm) with some extra (not melted) butter. Sprinkle with some flour.

If necessary, pit the cherries and divide them over the cake tin. Sift the flour into a bowl and mix in the salt and sugar. Beat in the eggs, followed by the milk and melted butter, until no lumps remain.

Pour the batter over the cherries. Bake the clafoutis in the center of the oven for 30 m until done and golden brown. 

Remove the mold from the oven and sprinkle the clafoutis with the icing sugar. 

Serve warm.

*replace with vegetable butter or oil

**Unpitted cherries release less moisture

***Replace 25 g with almond flour

**** Replace with sugar substitute

***** Replace if necessary. by lactose-free milk or vegetable variant

Pithiviers salé (Savoury Loiret chicken & fennel pie)

For ➋ pithiviers (18 cm) , suitable for ➋-➍
2 chicken legs
1 orange pepper, cut into small cubes
1 fennel bulb, cut into thin slices
1 shallot, finely chopped
5-10 cl white wine
1 package fresh puff pastry from the cooling
1 tbs of crème fraîche
2 tbs flat parsley, coarsely chopped
1 egg yolk
1 egg white
dash of milk
pepper & salt to taste

Bake the chicken legs in a pan until golden brown (30-40 m). Let them cool.
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Heat 1 tbs of olive oil in a pan. Stew the fennel briefly (without browning). Add white wine, so that the fennel is just covered. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Reduce over medium heat.
Pick as much chicken meat from the bones as possible. Be sure to have smaller and larger pieces to get a nice structure in your final pithiviers.
Mix the chicken meat with fennel, pepper, crème fraîche, parsley and egg yolk.
Cut a 18 cm circle and a 20 cm circle from the puff pastry. Fill the small circle with half of the chicken mixture, leaving 1.5 cm on the edge and making it a beautiful mountain. Mix the egg white and a dash of milk with a fork. Brush the mix on the outer edge of the small circle of puff pastry.
Put the big circle on it. Make sure that the 2 circles are properly connected by folding a decorative border or pressing the edge with a fork. Make a pattern from the middle with the back of a knife (or a tooth pick) to the edge and make sure that you do not poke through the puff pastry. Make a hole in the top so that the steam can escape. Brush the whole pie with the egg & milk mixture and put the cake in the preheated oven for 25-30 m.
Serve warm with a fruity red wine.

*Quantities for 2 pithiviers. Adjust for smaller pithiviers (to be used as a starter).
*Use a springform tin for easier baking

A pithivier is a traditional French dish hailing from the town of Pithivier in the Orléans region of France which dates back to the 17th century. Originally pithiviers were made with sweet fillings, namely frangipane, but are now more commonly savoury.

Twin Peaks cherry pie

For ➑
crust:
125 g flour
125 g butter
10 cl ice water
filling:
75 cl pitted sour cherries
25 cl water
250 g sugar
4 tbs cornstarch
¼ ts salt

Mix flour and butter with fork. Add ice water. Mix with your hands. When blended, roll into ball and refrigerate overnight. To roll out: flour both rolling pin and flat surface, split ball in two, roll out ½ to fit a 32 cm pan and ½ for lattice.

Strain cherries (yields 50 cl juice). Taste for sweetness, more/less sugar may be needed.

Add 25 cl water to make 75 cl juice.

Dissolve cornstarch in 25 cl juice, stir with whip.

Combine 50 cl of juice, 200 g of sugar, add a pinch of salt, and bring to a boil.

Add cornstarch mix, cook until clear, about 5 m. Remove from heat, stir in rest of sugar (blend thoroughly). Pour mixture over cherries, fold with wooden spoon, cool (stir mix while cooling to prevent scum from forming on top).

Pour mix in pie shell. Top completed pie with lattice crust.

Bake at 220°C for 35-40 m.

Serve with a mug of strong black coffee.

Cherry pie was the recurring comfort food in David Lynch's cult television series Twin Peaks' cafe.

American avocado pie

For ➑
22 cm digestive biscuits crust
2 avocados, peeled, pitted & pureed
10 cl lemon juice
10 cl sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 175°C.

In a bowl, mix together graham cracker crumbs and melted margarine. Place mixture in a 22 cm pie tin and press firmly into bottom and sides of pan.

Bake for 8 m.

Let it cool.

In a medium bowl, combine avocado, lemon juice, and condensed milk.

Blend well and pour into graham cracker crust.

Chill before serving.

Garnish with whipped unsweetened cream.

*Americans make it with (sweet) graham crackers. You could use petit beurre biscuits instead.