So, recently I had an operation which meant a whole week at home for recuperation. I wasn't really able to do much, which generally meant I was forced to knit by the fire, peruse cookbooks and watch cookery programmes -there was an upside to the pain! About a week after the doctors dissected me I suddenly felt the urge to bake a cake -I knew in that moment I was almost fully recovered. I had been studying a French cookbook, Savouring France by Georgeanna Brennan (recipe below taken from it) and also watching a series on the 'god-fathers' of French cuisine 'The Roux Brothers' -wow, how inspiring.
There was a cake on the show and in the book that caught my eye and excited my taste buds, a cherry custard cake Calfouti aux Cerises -I had to make it. And after all this was a celebration and also a thank you to my family for looking after me. It's such an easy cake to make -you don't need a food processor as it's more custard than sponge, actually zero sponge. In France it is usually made when the cherries are in season and called a clafouti when made with other fruit it's called a flognard. I had to root in the freezer and in the depths I found the remains of a glut of currants; red, black and white. Usually you wouldn't use frozen berries in a recipe but needs must, so I defrosted them gently in a very low oven, over some kitchen paper -to reduce the wetness. And when the cake came out of the oven I couldn't stop smiling -that's part of the joy of cooking for me, it can make you and others feel so goddamn happy!

Get a spoon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=flmoa2dVOSU The very sexy & French -Carla Bruni !

Preheat oven to 180'C, grease a flan dish size 23-25 cm
Combine 1 cup milk, 1/4 cup double cream, 3 tbsp good vanilla extract, 3 eggs, 1/4 cup caster sugar(extra if using tart berries), 1/4 tsp salt, 2/3 cup all purpose/plain flour sieved -make sure you have no lumps.
Pour in about 1 cm of the custard into the dish and put in oven for 2 minutes
Put in your fruit -berries, plums or cherries (stoned), pour over the rest of the custard
Cook in the oven for 30mins or until it has risen, browned and you can get a clean knife out of it
Dust with castor sugar, allow to cool a little -serve warm or cold.
Return for seconds.....!

Ready for the oven