Grape Clafoutis

Coleen and Jerry, Jeremie's mom and dad celebrated their 40th anniversary and these fruits were our contribution for the reception. We had 3 of these but the guests did not eat these perhaps they thought it was a display - should have left a note - they only ate the loose grapes that were served in the bowl. So, after distributing some, we still have plenty and i had to scratch for recipes and found this very interesting one - Grape Clafoutis from Dessert Circus by JACQUES TORRES.

The classic Clafoutis is made with cherries. Jaques Torres thought that it would be fun to make with grapes and what a lovely idea, cos this version which makes a 10 inch Clafoutis, contains less flour and the custard is more intense than the traditional Clafoutis recipe. Do not be intimidated by the lengthy method, it is forth the typing and reading cos it is very informative.

Ingredients:

Sugar Dough:

(12 ozs(342 gm) enough to make one 10-inch tart shell)

6 tbsp/3 ozs/83 gm cold unsalted butter, cubed

1 large egg

1/3 cup/1.5 oz/42 gm powdered sugar

1 1/4 cups/6 ozs/166 gm pastry flour(i use 6 ozs/166 gm bleached all-purpose minus 1 tbsp and replace with 1 tbsp cornstarch)

1 1/2 tsp/0.3 oz/8 gm baking powder

For the Custard:

1/2 cup/4 ozs/120 gm whole milk

1/2 vanilla bean

2 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

1/3 cup/2.4 ozs/70 gm granulated sugar

1 tbsp/0.3 oz/8 gm pastry flour

1 tbsp/0.4 oz/14 gm sour cream(Jaques uses Creme fraiche of course)

For the Filling:

Large Seedless grapes - about 2 cups

To finish the Clafoutis

Powdered sugar for dusting

Method:

To make sugar dough:

Place flour, baking powder, powdered sugar in the food processor and pulse a few pulses to mix the ingredients.

Add in the cold cubed butter and pulse 2 - 3 times to chop the butter into small pea size.

Add in the egg and pulse until combined - dough will be still loose but when a small lump is pressed together, it should be able to clump.

Remove from bowl into a large ziploc bag and squeeze dough into a round disk and use immediately or store it in thee refrigerator.

Prepare the tart shell:

Preheat the oven to 350f(175c).

Lightly butter the bottom of a 10-inch fluted tart pan, or you may have trouble unmolding the baked Clafoutis. (i used a removable bottom tart pan although Jaques said that he tries not to use one just in case the tart shell cracks and spills the custard onto the baking sheet - well he is the master)

Prepare the sugar dough (if you are using refrigerated dough, you will need to give the cold dough four or five quick raps with a rolling pin to break up the cold butter). Flour each side and roll the dough into a 12-inch circle between 1/4 and 1/8 inch thick. After each roll with the rolling pin, rotate the dough a quarter turn. This will keep it from sticking to the work surface as well as maintain the shape of the circle. Dust the work surface with more flour if needed, but be careful not to overflour, as this will make the dough tough. When you roll the dough, don't press too hard on the rolling pin, or you will cut the dough in half. Work quickly to keep the butter from melting and the dough from becoming too soft; if this happens, place the dough in the refrigerator until it is firm once again, about 15 minutes.

Transfer the dough to the pan by rolling i up around the rolling pin. Hold the rolling pin over the pan and unroll the dough into the pan. Use your fingers to gently press the dough into the bottom and sides of the pan. Make sure you press into the edge where the side of the pan meets the bottom. Remove the excess dough by rolling the rolling pin over the top of the pan to make a nice clean cut. Dock the bottom of the tart shell lightly with a fork to allow the steam to escape during baking to keep the shell flat.

Place the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake for 5 minutes. The tart dough takes longer to bake than the custard, and for that reason, the dough is partially baked before the custard is added. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and set aside until ready to use. Keep the tart pan on the baking sheet, as this will make it easier to transfer the tart shell back into the oven once it is filled.

Prepare the Custard:

Place the milk in a 1-quart heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Use a sharp knife to slice the vanilla bean in half lengthwise. Separate the seeds from the skin by scraping the blade of the knife along the inside of the bean. Place the seeds and skin in the heating milk. Adding the vanilla to the heating milk will allow the full flavor of the vanilla to infuse the milk and give the Clafoutis a stronger vanilla flavor. When bubbles begin to form at the edge of the pan, remove from the heat.

Place the whole eggs and egg yolks in a large mixing bowl and whisk until well mixed. Whisk in the sugar, flour, and sour cream. When smooth, whisk in the heated milk mixture until well combined. Strained the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring cup with a spout. Straining the mixture removed the vanilla bean as well as any pieces of cooked egg or lumps of flour. Set the custard aside.

To assemble the Clafoutis:

Place the grapes in the bottom of the prebaked tart shell.

Completely fill the bottom of the tart. Pour the custard into the tart shell to fill the pan. Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake until the custard sets, about 20 minutes. You can tell if the custard is set by gently shaking the tart pan, if the custard trembles slight, it is ready. If it is too loose, it needs to be baked longer. In that case, check it every 5 minutes until it is ready. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and allow the Clafoutis to cool.

To unmold the cooled Clafoutis, place tart over an overturned glass and remove sides of tart pan but if you are not using a removable pan do what Jaques does - center a flat plate face down over the tart pan. If you use a plate with raised edges, the tart will break. Flip over the plate and pan at the same time so the tart pan is on top of the plate. Gently lift off the tart pan. Center a second flat plate face down over the unmolded tart. Flip over both plates at the same time so that the Clafoutis is now right side up. Remove the top plate.

Sprinkle the top with powdered sugar (i always forget) before serving.

The baked Clafoutis will keep well wrapped in the refrigerator for up to two days.

Serves