Statisticians like to say sit-down family meals are going the way of the dodo. But in my family, we sit down together for most meals, including, the Sunday meal.

Unlike those weeknight meals, Sunday's dinner always includes dessert. I aim for the least complicated recipe and a clafouti, an easy French dessert traditionally using cherries, fits the bill. The most time consuming part is hulling and slicing the strawberries. Just pop it into the oven just as you sit down for dinner. Your family will love you for it.

Note: Traditionally this recipe calls for cherries but that doesn't mean you can't substitute other fruits of your liking.

Clafouti

Adapted from Casa Orinda restaurant, San Francisco

• Serves 6
• Prep time: 15 minutes
• Cooking time: 50 minutes
• Total time: 1 hour 5 minutes

Photo credit: Shutterstock

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup milk
• 3/4 cup hulled and sliced strawberries
• Cherries, strawberries or other fruit (optional)
• Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream (optional)

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Directions1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put butter in an 8x8-inch pan and place in the oven until the butter has just melted. Remove from the oven and set aside.

1. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a large bowl to blend. Using a rubber spatula, cut through the batter a couple of times to incorporate the butter and push the batter into the corners of the pan.
2. Drain any liquid from the strawberries and arrange them neatly over the batter.
3. Bake until the entire top is golden brown, about 50 minutes. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream, optional. Check out our other Ask a Chef and Dietitian articles for great tips and recipes.

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