Seasonal spotlight: Blackberries

I started seeing small cartons of dark, shiny blackberries at our local produce markets a few weeks ago, but I decided to take advantage of the dense bushes lining the road up to our house to pick my own this week. A neighbor recommended using the berries in a clafoutis, a dense, custard-like cake that is normally made with cherries. I'll post my recipe for cherry clafoutis eventually, but this late-summer blackberry version was so delicious I knew I had to share right away. I combined my blackberry harvest with a few handfuls of mulberries from our yard, which added an even sweeter taste.

Summer berry clafoutis

serves 8

1 1/2 cups of blackberries and mulberries (enough to cover the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan)

4 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup almond powder (unsweetened)

1 cup milk

2 eggs + 2 egg yolks

1/3 cup self-rising flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

pinch of salt

vanilla sugar for dusting

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place the butter in a 9-inch pie pan and place it in a warm oven until the butter is melted.
3. In a bowl, beat the eggs and yolks, then add the sugar and salt. Mix well. Add the vanilla extract and flour and mix until the batter is smooth and creamy.
4. Take the butter out of the oven, add it to the batter, then slowly add the milk while stirring.
5. Use a paper towel to spread around the remaining butter in the pie pan, then flour the pan. Spread the almond powder evenly in the bottom of the pan, then add the berries over the almond powder.
6. Pour the batter over the berries and bake for approximately 40 minutes.
7. Dust the cake with vanilla sugar and allow to cool. Serve lukewarm or cold, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a drizzle of crème anglaise.

This rich, smooth cake goes well with almost any combination of fruits - the classic cherry, as I mentioned above, but also peaches and nectarines, raspberries, etc... so have fun experimenting!

Bon appetit!