Sourdough Discard Cherry Clafoutis Recipe- Grains & Greens Kitchen

This sourdough discard cherry clafoutis is a dreamy custard-cake dessert, made with sourdough starter, no extra flour, cream & fresh cherries.

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Overhead shot of golden baked sourdough discard clafoutis, in a ceramic pie dish, being spooned out with a blue, patterned ceramic spoon. Dark pockets of baked cherries are dusted with powdered sugar.

I first met clafoutis on a worksheet in French class when I was eleven. Back then, I was mostly interested in coloring the cherries, not the dessert itself. But when my mom baked a clafoutis that week, it left a quiet impression. I don’t remember if I loved it then, but the memory stuck.

Years later, with a sourdough starter and a fridge full of discard, I rediscovered clafoutis, but this time with a twist. Swapping out the traditional flour and milk for tangy sourdough discard and a splash of cream gives this rustic dessert unexpected depth. And let me tell you: it’s even better than I imagined.

Love baking with discard and fresh summer fruit?

Then try some of these recipes next:

And if you mill your own flour at home, try this Mirabelle Plum Clafoutis with Fresh-Milled Einkorn Flour as well!

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

So what is clafoutis? It’s a classic French dessert that falls somewhere between custard and cake, with warm vanilla notes and a rich, almost crème brûlée-like texture. Instead of a crackly top, you get juicy pockets of sweet cherry. And honestly? I’m not the least bit mad about it.

This easy sourdough discard cherry clafoutis comes together fast. The only real work is pitting the cherries (and even that’s optional). Served lukewarm, dusted with powdered sugar, and spooned straight from the dish, it’s an effortless, elegant dessert that’s hard to beat.

Tools You May Need

9-inch Pie Dish: Any baking dish that’s about 9 inches (or 23 cm) in diameter works. You can also use a well-seasoned cast iron pan.

Cherry Pitter: Optional, but highly recommended.

Ingredients & Substitutions

Like a lot of traditional French recipes, clafoutis is a rustic masterpiece in simplicity and elegance. Just a handful of quality ingredients combine to create something so much bigger than the sum of its parts.

All ingredients for the sourdough discard cherry clafoutis recipe are layed out on a smooth wooden work surface: sugar, salt,sourdough discard, cream, eggs and cherries

Sourdough Discard This healthy dessert recipe is a great opportunity to use up your sourdough discard fridge stash (if you have one). If your discard has turned super sour in the fridge, you can refresh it using my Discard Reset method!

Tip: Don’t have quite enough discard stashed away? Make up the difference by adding equal parts flour and water to the batter.

Cream Traditionally clafoutis is made with milk, but I use cream here to make up for the water in the starter.

Cherries Sweet or sour, take your pick! All cherries are all welcome to become the star of a good clafoutis (add a little more sugar if you want, to balance the additional tartness of sour cherries).

Vanilla Sugar It’s the go-to in European baking. You can also scrape the seeds from half a vanilla pod and rub it into 2 teaspoons of sugar with your fingers, sub with vanilla extract or learn how to make your own vanilla sugar at home.

How to Make Cherry Clafoutis with Sourdough Discard (Step-by-Step)

Step 01

Pit Cherries

vibrant red cherries in a cream colored pie dish, shining in golden sunlight

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F) and generously grease a 9-inch pie dish with butter. Pit the cherries, if you want, and add them to the greased dish.

Step 02

Mix Custard

Dark red cherries in a pie dish, with a vanilla flecked liquid clafoutis batter poured over the top.

In a medium-large bowl, whisk together eggs, sourdough discard, cream, sugar, vanilla sugar and salt. The batter should be very liquid. Pour over the cherries.

Step 03

Bake

Sourdough cherry clafoutis cooling on a black wire rack. The golden dough is studded with many juicy cherries that leaked some juices during baking.

Bake for 40-50 minutes, until puffed and set in the middle. A toothpick inserted to the center should come out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly. It will deflate as it cools.

Step 04

Serve

Clafoutis is best served lukewarm, sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Tips & Troubleshooting

for the best sourdough clafoutis

Pitting cherries, yay or nay? Traditionally, the cherries are not pitted. When baked, the pits release a subtle almond-like aroma. I serve this to small children, so I opt to pit mine.
Adjust to your starter Use a little more cream, if your starter has a thicker consistency. The batter should have the consistency of heavy cream.
Grease your pie pan generously to avoid sticking. Eggs just love to bake in.
Into meal prepping? The batter can be prepared up to 24 hours ahead and stored in the fridge, well sealed. It’s also a good option if you’re just a little short on discard: add equal amounts of flour and water to make up the difference and let it ferment while it sits in the fridge.

Flavor Variations to Try

You can switch up the fruit for a non traditional but delicious twist on a classic. Berries, like raspberries and blackberries, and stone fruits like apricots, peaches or plums work well here.
If you’re interested in additional almond aroma, but don’t care for using unpitted cherries, add a drop of almond extract to the batter.
Looking to switch up grains? You can feed your starter with different flours or fresh-milled flour in preparation for this recipe.
Keep in mind that feeding your starter fresh flour can make it more sour more quickly, so don’t wait too long to use your discard.
If you mill your own flour at home, definitely try my recipe for Freshly-Milled Einkorn Clafoutis as well. It’s just as delicious and versatile, and pairs beautifully with all ripe summer fruits.

closeup of sourdough discard cherry clafoutis in the pie dish, showing the custard-like texture and the juicy pockets of baked cherries.

closeup of sourdough discard clafoutis, showing the custard like texture and juicy baked cherries

How to Serve Sourdough Clafoutis

Clafoutis is best enjoyed warm or lukewarm after baking, dusted with powdered sugar.

While it’s still warm you can spoon it out like custard (my favorite). It’ll firm up a little once cooled down completely, so you can also serve it sliced.

How to Store Sourdough Discard Clafoutis

Clafoutis can be baked for breakfast the night before, and stored at room temperature overnight.

Leftovers keep well in the fridge for three to four days. Warm slightly to soften the texture.

I wouldn’t try freezing clafoutis. As with any egg dish, freezing and thawing is likely to cause separation issues. (And in all honesty, this recipe comes together so quickly, you wouldn’t gain significant time in prepping and freezing this anyway.)

Recipe FAQs

Whatever you’ve got! Varieties vary so widely (and are rarely labeled clearly at the supermarket), so I say: use what’s available. I used sweet cherries from a friend’s tree, but sour cherries will also work beautifully. Just consider adding a bit more sugar (or even doubling it) to balance the tartness.

I haven’t personally tested it yet, but it should work. Just add 5-10 minutes to the baking time, to account for the frozen fruits.
Frozen cherries typically release more juices, so your batter might show a few pink streaks.

Yes, if you maintain a gluten-free starter you can absolutely swap that in.
I find that my gluten-free starter develops bitter notes quickly, so I’d go with active starter instead of collected discard from the fridge.

Yes! Older discard will give you a stronger tang. Great if you love that flavor, but not everyone does. If your discard’s been sitting a while and smells especially sour or boozy, I strongly recommend giving it a quick refresh using my Discard Reset method. It helps mellow the flavor while keeping the convenience.

Yes, you can! It won’t make a difference in the texture, but it has a milder tang to it. Great if you just fed your starter and don’t want to waste it.
New to sourdough? Check out my Simple Sourdough Starter Series to get started with confidence!

This recipe is designed around a 100% hydration starter (equal parts flour and water by weight), since that’s the most common. But honestly? A little variation won’t hurt. I usually keep mine at around 80% hydration to get the proper texture with my soft German flour. It gives me that ideal creamy, spoonable consistency.
The key is to aim for a clafoutis batter that flows like heavy cream.

If you make this Sourdough Discard Cherry Clafoutis…

I’d love to hear how it turned out!

Let me know in the comments below.
Leave a star rating.
Or save it for later on Pinterest!

P.S. If you enjoy quick recipes that are made only with discard and no additional flour, you might love these All-Discard Sourdough Pancakes too! They’re amazingly fluffy, come together quickly, and use up a lot of extra starter.

happy baking!

Prep Time:15

Cook Time:43

Total Time:58

Servings:8

Calories:211kcal

Equipment

9-inch pie dish - (or other 1 quart/1 litre baking dish)
cherry pitter - (optional)

Ingredients

1 cup sourdough discard - 240g
½ – ¾ cup heavy cream (depending on starter thickness) - 120-180ml
3 large eggs
⅓ cup sugar (double if using sour cherries) - 65g
2 tsp vanilla sugar (or vanilla extract)
⅛ tsp salt
3 cups sweet or sour cherries, pitted - 390g
powdered sugar (optional, for dusting)

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 175°C (350°F). Generously grease a 9-inch pie dish with butter. If you like, pit the cherries, then scatter them evenly in the dish.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sourdough discard, cream, sugar, vanilla sugar, and salt until the batter is smooth and quite liquid.
Pour the batter evenly over the cherries in the pie dish.
Bake for 40–50 minutes, until the clafoutis is puffed and set in the center. A toothpick inserted into the middle should come out clean.
Remove from the oven and let it cool slightly. It will gently deflate as it cools.
Serve lukewarm, dusted with powdered sugar.

Notes

Not pitting cherries adds a subtle almond aroma. Make sure to pit cherries if serving clafoutis to kids.
Adjust cream based on your starter’s thickness to keep the batter smooth.
Batter can be made up to 24 hours ahead; cover and refrigerate.
Swap in raspberries, blackberries, apricots, peaches, plums, or your favorite i summer fruit.
Spoon out like custard or cool completely and slice like cake.
Store leftovers overnight at room temperature or up to 3–4 days in the fridge.