Berry Custard with Sweet Cream
I love eggs and I love finding out new methods of eating them. My latest craze is this custard made with seasonal berries and flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg. It’s perfectly smooth, tastes sweet but not overwhelmingly so, and simply looks amazing! I eat it whenever I want to spoil myself a little with some fancy breakfast or dessert and when I have guests over but don’t want to spend hours in the kitchen making food. Topped with some sweetened whipped cream, this berry custard is perfect for any occasion. Even if the occasion is just “I have too many eggs in my fridge.”
This recipe is inspired by a classic French dessert called “clafoutis” or “flaugnarde.” These two are quite similar but not exactly the same. Clafoutis is supposed to be made with cherries. The cherries should be specifically unpitted. That’s because according to baking professionals, the cherry pits contain the most flavor that is only released when in high temperature. So to keep that flavor, pits should not be removed.
But what if you want to eat the same dish but with different fruit? That’s when you get a flaugnarde. There is no such thing as berry clafoutis; it’s a berry flaugnarde. But I suppose in the States we can just call it “berry custard.” Although I like the sound of the word flaugnarde so I might just start calling it that!
Additional Notes
Any berries will do for this recipe; you don’t need to use a specific type. They also don’t necessarily need to be fresh, you can make this custard with frozen berries as well. Just remember to thaw them and drain all the liquid. Otherwise, your custard might end up too wet and it will not look that good.
You can also substitute some of the other ingredients if your body doesn’t tolerate them. Honey can replace whole cane sugar (but use less of it because it’s sweeter) and almond flour can be used instead of sprouted flour. This will be good for people who follow the GAPS diet. Coconut milk can substitute cream if you avoid dairy in your diet.
Necessary equipment:
- a saucepan
- measuring cups
- a large mixing bowl
- a whisk
- a large baking dish
- a stand mixer OR a hand mixer
Custard
Ingredients:
- 12 ounces of blueberries
- 8 ounces of raspberries
- 6 ounces of strawberries
- 1 cup of grass-fed butter (how to make your own butter)
- 8 eggs
- 1/2 cup of whole cane sugar
- 1 cup of cream
- 2/3 cup of sprouted flour (how to make sprouted flour)
- 2 t. of vanilla extract
- 1 t. of powdered cinnamon
- 1/2 t. of sea salt
- a dash of nutmeg
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
- Butter a large baking dish.
- Put the berries on the bottom of the baking dish. Try to make them an even layer. Set the dish aside for now.
- Pot butter in a large saucepan and melt it over medium heat.
- Add in the whole cane sugar and stir with a whisk until it dissolves completely. Set aside the saucepan mixture to cool.
- In a large mixing bowl, put all the eggs in at once and whisk thoroughly.
- Add in the cream, vanilla extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sea salt. Whisk until combined.
- Slowly add the cooled butter and sugar mixture to the mixing bowl. Do it in a thin stream while constantly whisking.
- Gradually add in the flour and whisk until combined but not more. If you whisk too much, there will be too much air in your batter.
- Pour the batter over the berries in the baking dish.
- Bake for 45 to 55 minutes. You will know the custard is ready when it will be puff nicely and become slightly brown on the edges.
- Take out of the oven and let cool for about ten minutes.
- Serve warm with a dash of sweetened whipped cream (recipe below).
Whipped Cream
Ingredients:
- 1 cup of fresh cream
- 1/3 cup of whole cane sugar
- 1/2 t. of vanilla extract
Instructions:
- Use a mixer with whisk beaters attached to whip your batch of fresh cream. Do it on low speed setting first until you can see some bubbles.
- Increase the speed and whip until the cream thickens nicely. Be careful not to over whip.
- Add the whole cane sugar and the vanilla extract. Slowly beat until the cream fully combines.
- The whipped cream is now ready. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.