Pear Clafouti With Star Anise Food

PEAR CLAFOUTI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Butter a 10 x 3 x 1 1/2-inch round baking dish and sprinkle the bottom and sides with 1 tablespoon of the granulated sugar.
• Beat the eggs and the 1/3 cup of granulated sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. On low speed, mix in the flour, cream, vanilla extract, lemon zest, salt, and pear brandy. Set aside for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, peel, quarter, core, and slice the pears. Arrange the slices in a single layer, slightly fanned out, in the baking dish. Pour the batter over the pears and bake until the top is golden brown and the custard is firm, 35 to 40 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, sprinkled with confectioners' sugar, and creme fraiche.

PEAR CLAFOUTIS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375F. Lightly grease an 8 inch, cast iron skillet or similar sized baking dish with some butter.
• Put the eggs and sugar in a bowl or mixer and whisk well until well broken up and combined. Add the milk, flour, vanilla, lemon zest and salt and mix/whisk until smooth.
• Peel the pears, cut in half and remove the core. Cut into slices and arrange in the bottom of the skillet/baking dish - you can fan them out slightly as I did or arrange any other way you choose.
• Carefully pour the batter into the skillet/baking dish over the pears.
• Bake in the oven for roughly 35 minutes, until lightly browned around the edges and set.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a couple of minutes before serving. It will probably be puffed up when you take it out the oven and collapse slightly after a minute.
• Sprinkle with a little confectioner's sugar to serve, if desired.

PLUM CLAFOUTIS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Arrange 2 racks equally spaced in the oven. Place six (6 1/2-inch) individual gratin dishes on 2 sheet pans.
• In a small bowl, combine the vanilla seeds with the 2 teaspoons of sugar. Butter the six gratin dishes well with the butter and sprinkle the dishes with the vanilla and sugar mixture. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs and the 2/3 cup sugar on medium speed, until blended. Lower the speed and add the flour, cream, milk, and Armagnac. Whisk in the star anise and salt just until combined and set aside for 10 minutes. The batter will look like pancake batter.
• Cut the plums in half through the stem, discard the pits, and cut each half in wedges, again cutting through the stem. Distribute half a plum to each gratin dish, placing them in a pinwheel pattern. Distribute the batter evenly in the gratins (the plums will only be half immersed in the batter) and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the custard is just set.
• Sprinkle with the orange zest and serve hot or warm.

PEAR & HAZELNUT CLAFOUTIS

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Put the hazelnuts in a food processor and whizz until finely ground. Add the flour, eggs, extra yolks, sugar, milk, cream and vanilla and whizz until you have a smooth batter.
• Halve, core and slice the pears (you can peel them first if you like, but I usually don't). Arrange the pear slices in a 26 x 33cm ceramic, cast iron or copper gratin dish, then pour in the batter. Bake for 30-35 mins, or until the batter is set in the centre, golden and slightly souffléd.
• For the topping, toast the hazelnuts in a dry frying pan (keep a close eye on them - they can go from toasted to burnt very quickly), then roughly chop them so you're left with a mixture of halved and more finely chopped nuts. Scatter over the clafoutis, then sieve a little icing sugar over the top. Leave to sit for 10-15 mins (the clafoutis will deflate a little). Serve warm with crème fraîche or pouring cream.

CLAFOUTIS AUX POIRES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place the seeds from the vanilla bean and the 2 teaspoons of sugar in a small bowl and mix thoroughly. Butter four 10-by-1 1/2-inch baking dishes and dust each of them with the vanilla sugar. Set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the eggs, and then on low speed add the 2/3 cup sugar, the flour, salt, heavy cream, milk, grated anise and pear brandy. Mix for 2 to 3 minutes until smooth, and then let the batter rest for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, peel, quarter, core and slice the pears and place the slices in a single layer on the bottom of each baking dish. Pour the batter over the top. Bake until golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes. Sprinkle with lime zest and serve warm.

ANISE AND PEAR BUBBLY

Steps:

• In a small saucepan over moderate heat, add the nectar, pear liqueur and star anise. Bring up to a boil and turn heat off. Allow to steep for 5 minutes, then discard the star anise. Cool to room temperature and chill until ready to use.
• To serve, drop 1 cranberry to the bottom of each champagne coupe or flute. Add 2 tablespoons of the spiced pear mixture for coupe glasses and 3 tablespoons for the flute glasses. Top with Prosecco and enjoy!

PEAR CLAFOUTI WITH STAR ANISE RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9 x 5 x 2-inch gratin dish or a 10-inch round deep pie plate or porcelain dish. Dust dish with flour. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean into large bowl. Add eggs. Using electric mixer, beat until frothy. Add sugar and beat until mixture thickens. Add flour and beat until thick and smooth. Mix in cream, crème fraîche, or yogurt, milk, anise, and salt. Set batter aside while preparing the pears. Cut the pears into sixths or eighths, remove the cores. Layer pear slices attractively in the bottom of the prepared dish. Sprinkle pears with eau du vie, if you like. Pour the batter over, leaving just a little of the tops of the pears peeking through. Bake until the clafouti is nicely browned on top and a knife inserted into it comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Sift confectioners' sugar over clafouti and serve warm or at room temperature.

PEAR-AND-GOLDEN-RAISIN CLAFOUTI

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Generously butter a 12-inch-round gratin dish; set aside. Peel pears, cut in half lengthwise, and, using a melon baller, remove core. Slice pears into 1/4-inch-thick slices crosswise, and arrange pear halves in the bottom of prepared gratin dish. Set aside.
• In a food processor, combine the eggs, 1 cup cream, flour, granulated sugar, nutmeg, and salt, and process until a batter is formed. Pour the batter around the pears, and sprinkle the top with raisins.
• Bake until the top begins to set, about 12 minutes. Sprinkle with light-brown sugar; continue to bake until clafouti is set and golden brown on top, about 8 minutes. Whip remaining 3/4 cup cream to soft peaks. Remove clafouti from oven; serve immediately with whipped cream sprinkled with more brown sugar, if desired.

STAR ANISE POACHED PEARS

Steps:

• Combine sugar 2 tablespoons water, star anise, cloves, cinnamon stick and vanilla bean in a heavy large saucepan.
• Stir over low heat until sugar dissolves.
• Increase heat and boil with out stirring until syrup turns a deep amber color, occasionally brushing down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush and swirling pan, about 9 minutes.
• Remove from heat add 1 1/4 cups of water (the mixture will bubble vigorously).
• Bring to a simmer, stirring until pieces of caramel dissolve.
• Add pears, cover and simmer until tender, turning pears once about 5 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer pears to bowl.
• Boil liquid in sauce pan until thick and syrupy, about 5 minutes.
• Pour syrup over pears toss gently to coat.
• Chill until cold.
• Serve cold.

APPLE OR PEAR CLAFOUTI (AN EASY FRENCH DESSERT)

Steps:

• Sift flour, sugar and baking powder into a bowl.
• Make a well in the center of mixture and add the eggs, milk and vanilla extract.
• Mix in well to form a smooth batter.
• Add 4 TBS of the melted butter.
• Let batter stand for 30 minutes while preparing the fruit.
• Pre-heat the oven to 450°F.
• Butter an 8 inch round cake tin.
• Stir the fruit into the batter and pour into the tin.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.
• Serve warm, or cold.

PEAR AND DRIED CHERRY CLAFOUTI

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 10-inch ceramic tart dish or 9 1/2-inch pie plate. Dust with flour, and tap out excess; set aside. Put cherries in a medium bowl, and cover with boiling water by 1 inch. Let stand until plump, about 10 minutes.
• Cut pear lengthwise into 1/8-inch-thick slices; fan over bottom of prepared dish. Blend milk, cream, eggs, vanilla, sugar, flour, and salt in a blender until smooth, about 1 minute. Pour batter over pear.
• Drain cherries; sprinkle over batter. Bake until golden and set, about 25 minutes. Let stand 15 minutes. Cut into wedges.

PEAR CLAFOUTIS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Generously butter 9-inch-diameter deep-dish glass pie plate. Beat eggs, 1/2 cup sugar and salt in medium bowl to blend. Whisk in flour. Add milk, butter, vanilla and lemon peel and whisk until smooth. Arrange pears in bottom of prepared plate. Pour custard over pears.
• Bake until clafoutis is set in center and golden on top, about 55 minutes. Sprinkle powdered sugar over and serve.