This recipe was inspired by my dad. My dad absolutely LOVES cherries. As a child, we use to get my dad chocolate covered cherries on special occasions like his birthday or for Christmas.
When I started to research recipes containing cherries, most recipes contained gluten and were VERY high in sugar. Cherries, in and of themselves, are higher in sugar then berries, but in my opinion, their nutritional profile is worth the extra grams of natural sugar.
Why are cherries good for you?
It turns out that cherries are a natural antioxidant powerhouse. High levels of antioxidants have been shown to:
- Help with arthritis and inflammatory conditions
- Help lower blood sugar levels in people with diabetes
- Help lower the risk of heart disease
- Help lower the risk of colon cancer
- Help improve memory
- Help to improve sleep
What about the nutritional content of cherries?
One cup of cherries is approximately 77 calories, 0.5 g of fat, 19 g of carbohydrates and 1.6 g of protein. Of the 19 grams of carbohydrates, fiber accounts for 2.5 grams and sugar accounts for 13 grams.
Isn't that a lot of sugar? Well, yes and no.
To keep the sugar levels low, I only used 1 cup for the entire recipe. So, for 8 servings, the sugar content per slice from the cherries is only 1.6 grams per slice.
In my opinion, the healthy benefits of cherries (in moderation) outweigh their sugar content.
So, what exactly is Clafoutis?
Clafoutis, sometimes in Anglophonic countries spelled clafouti, is a baked French dessert of fruit, traditionally black cherries, arranged in a buttered dish and covered with a thick flan-like batter. The clafoutis is dusted with powdered sugar and served lukewarm, sometimes with cream.
I looked up several different recipes including one from Julia Child as well as one from Justin Chappel from Food and Wine and although both looked delicious, they also both contained white sugar and gluten.
By taking some of their methods and ratios, I created my own, gluten free, low carb Cherry Vanilla Clafoutis fit for a King (A.K.A - My Dad!)
The Execution
Heat an oven-proof skillet on medium heat (I used a 12 inch skillet for this recipe). Place butter in the skillet and warm until the butter is melted.
While the skillet is warming and the butter is slowly melting, prepare the egg and flour mixture.
Add ⅓rd of the egg and flour mixture to the skillet. Adding a little mixture to the skillet will help keep the cherries from sinking to the bottom.
Next, add the cherries gently covering surface of the skillet. In the picture below, I added some stevia sweetened chocolate chips along with the cherries. This is highly optional and I honestly don't feel like they are at all necessary but I had to try to see if it would add any major impact to the taste. Mr. Grumbles and I both agree that the chocolate is simply not necessary in such a flavourful dish so I would suggest omitting them.
Lastly, carefully add the remaining mixture over the cherries. Remove the skillet from the stove top and place it in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until set. Once it has cooled, gently sift powder sugar over the top.
The Clafoutis is best served warm. Mr. Grumbles added whipped cream to his and declared this recipe a victory!
Print Cherry Vanilla Clafoutis (Low Carb, Gluten Free)
Easy to make and delicious to eat, this low carb, gluten free, Cherry Vanilla Clafoutis is the perfect start to your day. By simply combining almond flour, milk, eggs and cherries, a non-fuss brunch dish is quickly created.
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
Ingredients
- 5 eggs
- ¾ cup stevia (or other sweetener of choice)
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or other milk of choice)
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- ½ cup almond flour (or ¾ cup AP flour to replace both flours)
- ¼ cup coconut flour
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp lemon zest (optional)
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp butter (for skillet)
- 1 cup cherries, pitted (I used frozen cherries)
- 3 oz chocolate chips (optional)
- sprinkle of Swerve Confectioner sugar (or regular icing surgar)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place butter in a 12 inch oven-proof dish and heat until melted on medium heat.
- In a blender, combine eggs, sugar, flour, vanilla, lemon zest (optional) and salt. Puree until very smooth.
- Pour ⅓ of the batter in the heated skillet and let cook 4-6 minutes or until it is starting to set on the top.
- Arrange cherries and chocolate chips (if using) over top. Gently pour remaining batter over cherries and immediately place skillet in preheated oven.
- Bake for 30-35 or until mixture is set.
- Serve warm with a little dusting of swerve confectioner sugar or icing sugar.
Notes
- The chocolate chips are completely optional and are not included in the nutritional content. The nutritional content is for the gluten free, low carb version only.
- You can also serve this dish with a dollop of whipped cream.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Breakfast, Brunch
- Cuisine: French, Low Carb, Gluten Free
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 8 slices
- Calories: 166
- Sugar: 3.1 g
- Fat: 12.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 6.8 g
- Fiber: 2.5 g
- Protein: 6.2 g
Cat says
Frozen cherries should work just as well but may sink to the bottom. You could try slicing the frozen cherries in half to combat this issue. If you try it with full frozen cherries, let me know how it turns out and I will update my post!
Susan says
do you have to thaw the cherries, or can you put them in frozen? thanks!