Sour Cherry Slab Pie
July 22, 2013
Margaux says…
My family has a farm that dates back to the mid-1800’s. We call it “the Big House.” It is pretty big, and one of my aunts lives in it now. It is one of my favorite places on earth. There are two Montmorency cherry trees there that were planted in 1967 for my Aunt Gigi’s birthday, and this year we just happened to be down in central Illinois when the cherries were ready to be picked!
We got just enough cherries before the kids started going bonkers (Stella seriously needed a nap). I always make pie with the cherries, and this year I really wanted something different. While browsing Smitten Kitchen (I really used a lot of her recipes this week!), I came across this one. OMG I will be making this again!!! You really should try it before this very short cherry season is over! (It might already be…it’s taken me way too long to get around to writing this).
(Yes his shorts are backwards…oops! Four-year-olds still sometimes have a little trouble getting dressed. 🙂 )
Sour Cherry Slab Pie
from Smitten Kitchen
1 1/2 recipes flaky butter pie dough, divided, patted into thick rectangles, wrapped in plastic and chilled for at least an hour in the fridge
6 cups sour cherries, pitted (fresh or frozen will work; if frozen, defrost and drain first)
3/4 to 1 1/4 cups of sugar (depending on how tart your cherries are. I used 1 cup.)
1/4 cup cornstarch
Juice of half a lemon
Pinch or two of salt
2 tablespoons heavy cream or one egg, beaten with a tablespoon of water
Glaze:
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 to 2 tablespoons milk or water or 1 tablespoon water plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice
Preheat oven to 375°. In a large bowl, combine cherries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice, and salt. Stir to combine; set aside.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the larger piece of dough into an 18-by-12-inch rectangle.
Transfer to a 15-by-10-by-1-inch rimmed baking sheet, (pastry will hang over sides of pan). Pour cherry mixture into lined baking sheet; set aside.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out remaining piece of dough into a 16-by-11-inch rectangle. Drape over filling. Bring bottom pastry up and over top pastry. Pinch edges to seal. Using a fork, prick top crust all over. Brush with heavy cream or egg wash.
Bake until crust is golden and filling is bubbling, 40 to 55 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack until just warm to the touch, about 45 minutes.
In a medium bowl, stir together confectioners’ sugar and milk, water or lemon juice (or combination thereof) until desired glaze consistency is achieved. Use a spoon to drizzle over top. Serve warm or room temperature.
Cherry-Chocolate Clafoutis
July 31, 2010
Margaux says
This is a recipe from my “3 Aunts and a Mom” cookbook from Aunt Suzy, submitted by Aunt Judy. It’s a take on the classic French clafoutis, with chocolate added (yum!). I’ve been itching for cherry season to arrive so that I could make it, and once it finally got here, every time we’ve had cherries in the house a certain little boy eats them all before I can even blink. This time I had a plan…bribe him with a popsicle while I pitted the cherries. Well, the minute I got out the dark ruby little treats, the popsicle was forgotten (who wants frozen grape juice when you can eat these sweet, juicy little guys??). So it took me twice as long to pit the three cups…
I had to give the cherry monster one for every two I pitted. Note the cherry-juice chin.
Apparently, purists bake their cherry clafoutis with un-pitted cherries, because the pit releases added flavor to the dish. I just think that dealing with pits when you’re trying to savor a dessert is not worth it…maybe I’ll try it that way sometime just to see. But it would have made this quick dessert even quicker, that’s for sure!
I love this dessert because it’s not to sweet…it kind of reminds me of cherry crepes, if you were just to pour the crepe batter over the cherries and bake it all together, or even flan, because of the egg and cinnamon flavors. It also makes a good brunch treat…I’ve had it for breakfast 2 days in a row now. 🙂
Cherry-Chocolate Clafoutis
recipe from my Aunt Judy Major
2 tbsp melted butter
3 cups fresh dark cherries, or 2 cans, well-drained (although I wouldn’t recommend canned)
1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
Grease 10″ iron skillet with 1 tbsp butter. Spread cherries and chips in the pan.
Mix together dry ingredients in a medium bowl.
Place liquids in a blender. Add mixture of dry ingredients and remaining 1 tbsp butter. Blend until smooth.
Pour batter over cherries and chips.
Bake 55 to 60 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool 15 minutes before serving.
Be sure its a 10″ skillet. The batter will puff up and fill the skillet during baking, though it falls soon after it comes out of the oven. Serve warm with powdered sugar dusted over the top. (I served with vanilla ice cream…it was perfect).
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