strawberry flaugnarde

Flaugnarde aux Fraises

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Take one look at most food bloggers’ Instagram feeds, and you’ll find photographed baskets of fresh strawberries. It’s that time of the year when strawberries are big, red, and perfectly sweet; there’s none of those white, tasteless strawberry knock-offs you find sitting unloved at the supermarket. While I have yet to photograph my own farmer’s market bunch, that doesn’t mean I’m not buying them. In fact, for the past month, they’ve been a must-have on my weekly grocery list. In the everyday sense, I love eating them with my morning yogurt or as a side to some scrambled eggs and toast. When I’m looking to use them in a dessert, I’ll either do a berry pie or galette, as I’ve already told you guys how much I love pie crust. To mix things up, I decided to make this strawberry flaugnarde (pronounced flow-nyard), a traditional French dessert from the southwest of France. 

strawberry flaugnarde

strawberry flaugnarde strawberry flaugnarde

While flaugnarde can be made with a variety of fruits, the base of the dessert is always the same: a custard batter. Now, if you’ve ever made or seen clafoutis, you’ll probably be thinking these two look like they’re the same thing, and you’re pretty much right. The only main difference is that clafoutis has been known to be made with sweet, black cherries according to French tradition. While many of us have put our own twist on clafoutis, that doesn’t change the fact that the French consider clafoutis to be of only one variety. Flaugnarde, however, can be made with peaches, plums, apples, pears, berries, etc. The reason I love flaugnarde is because, to me, it’s perfectly simple and beautiful in that French countryside sort of way. 

strawberry flaugnarde strawberry flaugnarde strawberry flaugnarde

Personally, I love this type of cuisine. While I say that I am an avid fan of French cuisine, what I really mean is that I am an avid fan of cuisine from the south of France. My best friend, who lives in Paris, often takes trips out to the country to visit her boyfriend’s family. She often describes the amazing foods that his mom will make, all from scratch. Whether they’re simple foods like mayonnaise, or more elaborate items like brioche, this mom makes everything by hand, without fancy tools, from start to finish. The foods are rustic and simple, ingredients fresh and genuine, and yet the dishes are completely impressive all the same. This is what I call the art of cuisine, and this flaugnarde is a wonderful example of that. Flaugnarde is so incredibly easy to make. Simply place your preferred fruit at the bottom of a tart pan, loaf pan, or pie pan (your choice); then, whisk the rest of the ingredients in a bowl (eggs, sugar, flour, vanilla), and pour this batter over the fruit. While it bakes, the edges of the flaugnarde will really puff up, similar to a dutch baby pancake, and then quickly deflate once it’s out of the oven. The custard thickens into a sort of flan/bread-pudding consistency, and becomes absolutely irresistible. I sliced the flaugnarde into individual slices, but I honestly couldn’t stop at just one piece.

Flaugnarde aux fraises

Flaugnarde aux fraises

Yield: 4

Ingredients

  • 1 c strawberries, stems removed and quartered
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 c granulated sugar
  • 1/2 c whole milk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 c all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 tsp lemon zest
  • 1/8 tsp kosher salt
  • powdered sugar for dusting on top

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Grease a small tart pan or a 9-inch loaf pan well.
  2. Arrange quartered strawberries on the bottom of the pan, very slightly spacing them out from each other.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar together until pale and foamy. Add the whole milk, vanilla extract, all-purpose flour, lemon zest, and salt. Whisk to combine and create a smooth batter.
  4. Pour the batter over the berries in the pan, and bake the flaugnarde for approximately 30 minutes. Top should be golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean or with just a few crumbs.
  5. Let the flaugnarde rest in the pan for at least 15 minutes before removing. To remove, gently lift both ends of the flaugnarde and transfer to serving plate; otherwise, you can serve in the pan. Dust with powdered sugar and, optionally, enjoy with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream.

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48 Comments

    1. Hi Lindsay, I’ve never tried that as a substitute for the whole milk, so I wouldn’t be able to say. In general, custards need the fat content so using the butter would be a good idea, but just note that almond milk has more water content than whole milk so the dessert may bake a little more quickly.

    1. Yes, you can! It’s simple a matter of preference. Some people enjoy it room temperature only, while others enjoy it cold out of the fridge too. I would say give it a try and see what you like! 🙂

  1. Hi Beeta!! I made this today and it was fantastic!! It was easy to make and tasted fresh, light and full of flavor! We had it with powdered sugar on top….some requested whipped cream…either way was great! This stands on it own…no need for anything at all! It was a BIG hit in my house! Thank you so much for sharing these recipes!!

    1. Thank you so much for sharing your kind feedback with me, Sue! I really appreciate you coming back and taking the time to leave a nice note. So glad you are enjoying the recipes! <3

  2. Hi Beeta:
    I made this recipe tonight in a loaf pan and we loved it! The flaugnarde slid out of the pan easily, as I followed your advice to make sure to apply the butter liberally. Since I didn’t have whole milk, I used half and half. Your photographs are beautiful and thank you for sharing this wonderful treat.

    1. Oh that’s so lovely to hear, Kimberly! Thank you so much for coming back to share your experience and feedback with this recipe. I really appreciate it! 🙂

  3. Do you invert after it has cooled? How are the strawberries on top and not covered with batter if you are pouring it over the berries before baking?

    1. Hi Sarah! The strawberries emerge from the surrounding custard batter as the flaugnarde bakes. If you’ve ever made a clafoutis or dutch baby pancake, this is very similar in that the custard layer deflates when it comes out of the oven making the strawberries stand out more prominently. And yes, I make sure to grease my pan really well so that I can just dip the loaf pan on its side at an angle to slide the dessert out rather than flip it out completely upside down. 🙂

  4. Hi, I just made this and it was delicious. Just wondering how you achieved the layered look on the “crust”. When I made the batter it was fairly liquid and it came out looking like a clafoutis. Just wondering if maybe my batter should have been thicker because it looks like you were able to pour yours in layers?

    1. Hi Koree! I’m not sure what you mean by the layered look. I simply poured the batter into my pan in one go and baked it as directed – no layering. This is exactly like a clafoutis (or even a Dutch baby pancake as we refer to it here in America), so you did it exactly right! 🙂 The only reason this is called a flaugnarde vs. clafoutis is because clafoutis is traditionally the term for this recipe when cherries are used – not other fruits. Hope that helps! 🙂

  5. That looks like such a delicious recipe. I love things like this with a custard base. I’ve made some nice brioche and croissants before with a creme patissiere filling. It’s really delicious.

    I’d never heard of this dish and I love learning about new French dishes. Lovely photographs. x

    1. Thanks so much, Angela! I love when viennoiserie is filled with pastry cream…it’s to die for! I can imagine yours were just mouthwatering <3

      Thanks so much for your sweet words! XO

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