Category Sweet Things | Cowgirl Chef

July 13, 2018

Cherry Clafoutis

A cross between a pancake and a custard, there may not be an easier summer dessert than a clafoutis, the French dessert that’s perfect for cherries. The light, eggy custard is just sweet enough to offset cherries’ tartness, or if you have some sweet ones, it’s not going to make the dish overly sweet — or you can leave it off altogether.

It’s perfect for lazy cooks — you just whisk everything together, pour it into the skillet, add the cherries, and bake. The only problem comes into play later, when it’s out of the oven.

I mean, if eating too much clafoutis ALL AT ONCE is a problem. Nope. No problem here.

Note: This post was supported by a generous batch of cherries from the Northwest Cherry Growers.

Cherry Clafoutis

Serves 6

2 tablespoons butter + more for greasing the skillet
3 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
½ cup sugar
½ cup flour
8 ounces cherries, pitted and halved
powdered sugar, for serving

Melt the 2 tablespoons butter in a small saucepan over low heat or in a microwave. Set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 325°F and grease a 10-inch cast iron skillet with a bit more butter.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, sugar, flour and melted butter. It’s okay if there are a few lumps. Pour this into the greased cast-iron skillet and scatter the strawberries around. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until set — it’ll puff up but then fall when you take it out of the oven, but that’s okay. Let cool slightly before serving with powdered sugar on top.

in Baked / Sweet Things

May 3, 2018

Better Than Rice Krispie Treats

I’ve always loved the idea of Rice Krispie treats much more than the thing itself. The cloyingly sweet, sticky marshmallow binding always put me off. Other than the crunch, I didn’t understand the big love.

So when I saw a Ellie Krieger recipe in the Washington Post recently for a marshmallow-less version, I thought I’d give it a try…then immediately started tinkering around until I came up with something a little bit different.

There’s no downside to these, other than they’re best kept in the fridge (or freezer, which is my choice) because the chocolate will melt otherwise and it’ll be a big mess, but I see this is a good thing, because if they’re hidden in the icebox and not just staring at me like cookies do from the jar on the countertop, I’m less apt to eat all of them up in a couple of days. As if.

Better Than Rice Krispie Treats

Makes 30

Adapted from a recipe by Ellie Krieger

1 cup semi or bittersweet chocolate chips (Guittard’s 63% extra-dark)

5 cups organic puffed brown rice cereal

½ cup honey

1 cup almond butter (I used crunchy because it’s the best)

¼ cup cocoa powder (I used Guittard’s cocoa rouge)

1 teaspoon sea salt

1. Line a 9-inch by 9-inch pan with parchment paper.

2. Put the chocolate chips and the brown rice cereal in a large bowl. Set this aside.

3. Melt the rest of the ingredients — the honey, almond butter, cocoa powder, and sea salt — over very low heat on the stovetop. Pour this into the bowl and mix until all of the brown rice cereal is well coated. Put this into your pan, using a spatula to press it down and all of the way into the corners. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for an hour. Slice into bars, then wrap each one individually and keep in the fridge or the freezer.