10 May 2010

Rose Murray's Savoury Roasted Tomato Clafouti


Rose Murray's Roasted Tomato Clafouti
If you have been following More Than Burnt Toast you will know I started a feature to highlight Canadian Chefs in 2009. This year I continue on this journey to bring you all that Canada has to offer in the culinary world!!! Through your TV networks, or perhaps on other blogs, or even just right here on More Than Burnt Toast you may have heard of some of our Canadian chefs. For those of you who haven't, I hope you will find it interesting to see what our chefs are up to, a little about their history and how they came to love what they do. For the next few months I will continue to feature one of our Canadian chefs. There will be some chefs you have heard of and adore and some lesser known who are "up and coming". Some are not even chefs at all, but just Canadians who are passionate about what they do!! It's time to beef up the action and present the fifteenth installment in my Canadian Chef series. I introduce you to:

Rose Murray


Rose Murray has been well renowned in the Canadian food scene for almost three decades. I remember as a high school student reading her articles in Canadian Living magazine and wanting to make that my career as well. I don't know what happened to that dream, but here we are. She has written 10 cookbooks, writes for a host of magazines and newspapers, has taught cuisine at various colleges and cooking schools, and continues to make many television and radio appearances.  Rose has helped shape Canada’s culinary landscape since 1979.


She grew up on a self-sustaining mixed farm near cottage country in Collingwood, Ontario. As a result Rose learned the art of growing your own food, as well as cooking and preserving it, at a very young age. We had a weekend cottage up in that area and I remember having my own garden and nurturing the vegetables I loved.

After finishing a degree in English from Trinity College at the University of Toronto, Rose went on to teach high school English. Over the years, Rose followed her passion, which led her to more formal food studies in Paris at renowned cooking schools such as Cordon Bleu, La Varenne and Ecole de Gastronomie Francaise Ritze-Escoffier. Rose also took classes in Costa Rica, Hong Kong and Thailand further developing her knowledge and understanding of international food and culture.

Rose has two grown children and two grandchildren and now lives in my home town of Cambridge, Ontario with her husband and dog Maggie.

Rose says, "Traditional clafoutis (a kind of cake-like custard) are made with black cherries or other fruit and  served as a dessert. I’ve added cheese and chosen cherry tomatoes as a savory version that would be just right for a company breakfast, perhaps with some back bacon and interesting bread."

I was so impressed with this savoury dish I wanted to share it with you right away. Roasting the tomatoes before putting the dish together gives you a burst of summer flavour in every cheesy bite!! What better way to showcase out of season tomatoes and boost their flavour factor. But why stop there. Just the idea of a savoury clafouti makes my toes tingle. I can see a combination of feta and other Greek cheeses and chopped baby spinach in my future.

I contacted Rose and she generously allowed me to post this recipe for you.



**Roasted Cherry Tomato Clafoutis**
printed with permission from Rose Murray

2 cups (500 mL) cherry tomatoes (1 lb/500 g)
2 tablespoons (25 mL) olive oil
1 tablespoon (15 mL) chopped fresh thyme (or 1 teaspoon/5 mL dried)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 teaspoon (10 mL) granulated sugar
Salt and pepper
1 cup (250 mL) light cream
3 eggs
2 tablespoons (25 mL) all-purpose flour
1/2 lb (250 g) mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 2 cups/500 mL)

Remove the stems from the tomatoes. Arrange in a single layer in a shallow 6-cup (1.5 L) baking dish. Drizzle with the oil; sprinkle with the thyme, garlic, sugar, 1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt and 1/4 tsp (1 mL) pepper.

Roast in a 400°F (200°C) oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until the skin shrivels slightly.

 In a blender, blend the cream, eggs and flour until smooth; pour over the tomatoes. Sprinkle with the cheese. Reduce the temperature to 350°F (180°C); bake for about 25 minutes or until puffed and golden. Serve immediately.

Makes 4 servings.

You are reading this post on More Than Burnt Toast at http://morethanburnttoast.blogspot.com. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to the author/owner of More Than Burnt Toast. All rights reserved by Valerie Harrison. Best Blogger Tips

37 comments:

  1. Ooh, another Vancouver food blogger! I'm from Coquitlam. I love your blog and the cdn features you do :)

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  2. I have only ever made a dessert clafoutis, but this! This is fantastic! Ideas are just pouring from my brain. Thank you for such delightful inspiration.

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  3. This feature is always so informative. Love to learn about my norther neighbors and who is doing the cooking up there!

    This recipe looks so delicious. When I saw "clafouti" I was almost wondering if this would be some kind of bizarre dessert. ;-)

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  4. Ll'burntToast - what a sweetheart! wish I'd had a girl!

    The Tomato Clafouti ... that leaves me speechless but headed to the kitchen. Glorious!

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  5. That looks really good! A great summertime dish!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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  6. I'm with you...spinach + feta next time!

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  7. Honestly Val, I read your posts and want to move to Canada!! Gorgeous!!
    xoxo Pattie

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  8. I love cherry clafoutis! but your idea is really unique. i will definitely give this one a try. Lovely post and really cute pics too :)

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  9. And how did it taste? Loved the read. Love the series and the idea of a savoury clafoutis is just too obvious. Why didn't I think of that?
    Looks great.
    :)
    Valerie

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  10. I don't think I've ever seen a savory clafouti before (although don't you just love saying the word cla-foo-ti!) but it sounds delicious. And I DO have some mozzarella that I need to use up!

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  11. Oh my gosh, it looks beautiful! I totally did not expect to see sugar in there, but I bet it works beautifully. I'll take two, please! :-)

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  12. This looks wonderful! I've never had a savoury clafoutis either, so I've got this bookmarked for tomato season. Your blog is lovely! I'm in Canada too--Ottawa:)

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  13. I think I'm in love. To my great shame, I've never done a savory claufouti. I'll have to do something about that. Yours looks wonderful. I hope you are having a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  14. AnonymousMay 10, 2010

    I love the idea of a savory clafoutis, perfect with tomatoes!

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  15. I love you new layout over here. It looks terrific! So does this clafouti! I have yet to make one. I love that you chose savory over sweet. I know I would love this!

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  16. i think this must be the first savory clafouti that i've ever seen, and what a fine one it is! in fact, i may prefer this to a sweet one, which is quite rare for me... :)

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  17. I'm printing off this recipe for my brunch/luncheon/light supper file. It sounds absolutely delicious. Soon our farmers' market will have tiny tomatoes in bright reds, oranges and yellows which, I think, will make a lovely combination in this dish. A huge thank you to Rose Murray (thanks for her most interesting bio) and to you for this recipe.

    Best,
    Bonnie

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  18. I've never heard of a clafouti but it looks fantastic! I am planning to print it out and try it. The roasted tomatoes sound amazing! Thanks for a great recipe.

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  19. I have had it in my head for about a year to make a savory clafouti, but have never done it. This recipe is great and I too have many ideas for variations on this. Thanks for inspiring.

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  20. I'm completely intrigued by this savory clafouti and can't wait to try it. I really enjoy your posts about Canadian chefs, Val. Nicely done.

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  21. A savory clafouti? That's brilliant. i have to try that. PS- Your new design is beautiful, Val. So bright and cheerful and easy to read. I love it.

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  22. What a great idea! You can have savory bread pudding for breakfast, so why not, clafoutis?

    I love your new design!

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  23. Ummmm! It looks delish~ Thank you for introducing Rose Murray for those of us who are not familiar with her.

    Valli ~ Please stop by my blog ~

    http://onceuponaplate.blogspot.com/2010/05/announcing-our-barefoot-contessa-style.html

    I'm happy to announce that YOU are the winner of my Barefoot Contessa-Style Give Away!

    Congratulations!!! ~Mari

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  24. This sounds like it would make an incredible summer lunch or dinner!

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  25. My toes are tingling too just looking at his Val!

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  26. What a terrific idea, tomato clafoutis! Rose is a gem.

    Saw your blog on Foodie Blogroll widget today, 5 random blogs. Cool!
    LL

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  27. I love vegetables clafoutis and this one seems to be particularly outstanding!

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  28. Oh, a savory clafouti, you don't see that very often. Looks wonderful.

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  29. I don't know her name but I'm sure I have read her recipes. Have never made a clafouti so love this savoury version.

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  30. Wow Val, your blog looks awesome now! I love the changes you've done to it :D. How do you make it to be everywhere and do so many things? The Clafoutis looks delicious and so glamorous, I would love to try it :D

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  31. I don't know this lady but I like her recipe! I can't believe it takes only 2 tablespoons of flour! Sounds good! and so light!

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  32. I love this take on clafouti! And thanks for the info on Rose!

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  33. Looks lovely Val. I wish I had this right now!

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  34. I've been away from my kitchen for a week due to traveling and I missed it. This clafoutis is something I would love to be making right now!

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  35. I've never thought to make a savory clafouti! And what better ingredient than tomatoes. YUM. Like the new blog look, too!

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  36. I really like the sound of a savoury clafouti like this!

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  37. My toes are tingling too. I don't know how I missed this great post, but somehow I did.

    Thank goodness I saw the picture on the sidebar, If not, I would have missed out forever. Sigh.

    Merci beaucoup Val. I hope you will make more versions soon.
    Sam

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Welcome to my home. Thank you for choosing to stay a while and for sharing our lives through food. I appreciate all your support, comments, suggestions, and daily encouragement.

Val

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