Caramelised Pear Clafoutis
Celebrate the beginning of the autumn by baking this rustic caramelised pear clafoutis, made with Australian-grown Red Sienna Pride pears. This comforting dessert will have everyone coming back for seconds!
Equipment
- Oven
- Blender
- 23cm Pie Dish
- Frypan
Ingredients
To prepare the baking dish
- 10 g softened butter
- 15 g castor sugar
Clafoutis Batter
- 1 cup full-cream milk
- 80 g castor sugar
- 3 eggs Large
- 20 g butter, melted and cooled
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or extract
- Pinch of salt
- 150 g almond meal
- 3 tsp (15g) plain flour
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp ground
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 20 g flaked almonds
- 1 tbsp (15g) castor sugar extra, for sprinkling on top
Caramelised Pears
- 3 Red Sienna Pride pears (or other in-season pears) ripe
- 4 tsp (20g) sugar
- 2 tsp (10g) butter
- 100 ml water
- ½ vanilla bean (or 1 tsp vanilla paste)
- 1 tsp brandy or other liqueur that will complement the pears
To Garnish
- Icing sugar
- Edible flowers optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 170C fan-forced.
- Generously grease the base and sides of an ovenproof 23cm ceramic dish with butter before covering it in a layer of sugar - this will form a lovely crust.
- In a blender, combine milk, sugar, eggs, melted butter, vanilla, and salt and blend until combined. Then add the almond meal, flour, lemon zest, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg and blend for 1 minute or until smooth. Leave the batter to rest for 30 minutes.
- Caramelise the pears while the batter rests - peel and quarter the pears, and remove the seeds (a melon baller is ideal for this job, or use a small spoon).
- Preheat a large frypan (30cm) over med-high heat and when hot add the butter, vanilla, and sugar to the pan, followed by the pears in a single layer. Regularly baste the pears with the pan juices until caramelised, then add the water and brandy. Place a lid on the pan and continue to simmer on low heat, adding water if needed, for about 10 minutes or until tender.
- Transfer the caramelised pears to the baking dish, spacing them evenly over the base of the dish, then pour in the batter. Sprinkle the top with extra sugar and flaked almonds to add a lovely sweet crunch.
- Place in the oven for 40-50 minutes, or until golden brown, and the batter is cooked all the way through. To check, insert a skewer, and if it comes out clean it’s ready.
- Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly, dust with icing sugar and garnish with edible flowers, if using. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!