Inspired by French icon Brigitte Bardot, my Pear Clafouti is essentially pears suspended in custard. Simple, elegant, & completely delicious.

November 5, 2019 Updated February 25, 2022 Jump to Recipe
Inspired by French icon Brigitte Bardot, my Pear Clafouti is essentially pears suspended in custard. Simple, elegant, & completely delicious.
Brigitte Bardot is one of a kind.
When Bardot burst onto the screen with her dynamic performance in …And God Created Woman (1956), the world took notice. Her uninhibited screen persona and private life were shocking, magnetic, stylish, and unapologetic.
Audiences were fascinated with this free spirit who redefined the modern woman. And they couldn’t stop looking.
As her friend and director Nina Companeez once said about BB,
“Call it charisma or magnetism, or just the magic spell she could cast. Whatever, it was, it was truly incredible. There was something so obviously unique about her. Of course she had perfect posture and the most beautiful walk. But it was much more than just that. She’d step into a crowded room and the entire room would stop. I saw it happen all the time, especially in restaurants, where people who were just about to put a fork into their mouth would, literally, freeze right where they were, as if she sent out signals, and they instinctively knew she was there.”
Over seventy years since Bardot first hit the world stage, we’re still captivated. It’s often been said, at times even by Brigitte herself, that the public and private Bardot are one and the same.
But that’s an over-simplification, an injustice to this complex woman who still keeps us guessing. The public and private Bardot are not the same. At least not completely.
Read my article on Brigitte for seven fascinating facts you didn’t know about the private life of this French icon.
But today I’m sharing another little known fact about Brigitte:
She can cook.
Yes, Brigitte Bardot, international movie star and fashion trendsetter [aff. link], cooks.
And clafouti happens to be one of the dishes that Brigitte excels at. (She also makes a killer vegetable soup, but we’ll save that for later recipe inspiration.)
Over the years, Brigitte has been known to make her homemade clafouti for friends and family. When Brigitte’s younger sister Marie Jeanne—or “Mijanou”—as Brigitte nicknamed her, was ill in the hospital, Brigitte decided to brighten her sister’s day by bringing her a homemade meal. And as you probably guessed, Brigitte also brought Mijanou her homemade clafouti for dessert.
Much like Brigitte herself, clafouti is quintessentially French. At its core, this Gallic dessert is fruit suspended in custard. Simple, elegant, and completely delicious.
I can’t say what fruit Brigitte uses in her homemade clafouti. My guess is she probably switches it up, using whatever is in season: berries and stone fruit, such as plums or cherries, all make delicious clafouti.
My Clafouti à la Bardot uses pears. The mild texture and sweetness of pears just complements the gentle custard of this dessert beautifully.
Make my Pear Clafouti à la Bardot for dessert, or make it for brunch. Either way, I bet you’ll find yourself thinking of Brigitte, making clafouti in her own tasteful and down to earth kitchen at La Madrague, the house in Saint Tropez that Brigitte has called home for over 60 years.
This Post Has 6 Comments
I have never eaten clafouti but honestly love everything about this! I love recipes with a story, like this one, and if it’s good enough for Brigitte Bardot, it will be fabulous for us. And that kitchen – wow! The cutest! How fun that you girls are planning a trip to Paris soon. My daughter absolutely loves Paris and just loved it there last year. Enjoy!!!
Thank you so much Katerina! Ohhhhhh you are in for such a treat, Clafouti is AMAZING!!! And I totally agree, recipes with a story are so appealing to me, just makes the recipe all the more special! Oh my goodness how fun, that sounds like a dream come true, visiting Paris with your daughter! I am sure it was an amazing trip! Hope so much that Mar and I will be able to go very, very soon!
The almond flour makes this SOOO good! Also I love your pink dress!
Thanks so much Karen! ♥️
I’ve heard of clafouti, but I’ve never had it. I can’t believe there’s a French dessert that I haven’t had! I really didn’t know anything about BB, except the name, before reading your post. Very interesting!
Thanks for reading Jeff! BB was such a groundbreaking star. And it’s just too perfect that she also bakes a dessert as quintessentially French as clafouti!