Ainsley Harriott’s Blueberry and Almond Clafoutis with Cardamom Cream
Ainsley Harriott uses sweet and sour blueberries in place of more traditional cherries in this take on a classic French clafoutis, livened up with lemon zest and served with cardamom cream.
Introduction
A traditional French clafoutis is made with cherries but I love the unique, perfumed sweet sourness of blueberries, and they go so well with almond. The ground almonds make this slightly less custard-like than a typical clafoutis. Instead, it has more texture and flavour, like a deliciously light cake batter. Serving with a cardamom cream may sound peculiar, yet the combination of the citrusy, aromatic spice with the vanilla notes in the sweet berries really does work. I like to call this bluefoutis, but maybe that’s just me!
Ingredients
| A small knob of | butter, for greasing |
| 100g | caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling |
| 250g | fresh blueberries |
| zest of 1 lemon | |
| 125ml | whole milk |
| 150ml | double cream |
| ½ tsp | or 1 tsp vanilla extract |
| 3 | large eggs |
| 30g | plain flour |
| 40g | ground almonds |
| 1 tsp | baking powder |
| a pinch of | salt |
| For the cardamom cream: | |
|---|---|
| 250ml | double cream |
| 1 tbsp | icing sugar, plus extra for dusting |
| Seeds of 4 - 5 | cardamon pods, crushed |
Essential kit
You will need: a 20m ovenproof baking or pie dish.
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas 4.
Grease a 20cm ovenproof baking or pie dish with the butter and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of caster sugar to coat the inside. Put the blueberries in the bottom of the dish and scatter over the lemon zest.
Mix together the milk, cream and almond extract.
In a separate mixing bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar together until light and frothy, then stir in the flour, ground almonds, baking powder and salt. Gradually pour the milk mixture onto the eggs, whisking all the time, until the batter is smooth and creamy, but being careful not to overmix.
Pour the batter over the blueberries and sprinkle with caster sugar. Bake in the oven for 35–40 minutes or until puffy, golden and just set with a slight wobble in the middle.
Meanwhile, whisk the double cream and icing sugar together until soft peaks form. Fold in the cardamon until well combined. Chill until needed.
Remove the clafoutis from the oven and transfer the dish to a wire rack for 5–10 minutes. The clafoutis will deflate a little as it cools, but don’t worry! Dust with icing sugar and serve warm or at room temperature, topped with a spoonful of the cardamom cream.
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