Persimmons are Sweet

I was out for lunch with friends the other day, and mentioned that I was going home to have a persimmon for an afternoon snack. One friend had never eaten one, the other had eaten an unripe persimmon and had no interest in ever eating another one. Well, I've been eating them in the fall for years. We had a very prolific persimmon tree in Los Angeles, and my neighbor had an orchard in her backyard, so I was never at a loss for persimmons. The challenge was to get to them before the birds.

There are two common types of persimmons. My favorite is the heart-shaped Hachiya. They are unpalatable if eaten before softening. They must be a deep orange color, and very soft to the touch. It is very sweet and soft. I used to have so many of these persimmons, so here is what I would do. I would wash them, halve them, and put each half in a sealed baggie, then freeze. I would eat them as snacks all winter and spring. Let them defrost and you have a delicious treat.

The other common persimmon is originally from Japan. It is the fuyu persimmon, squat like a tomato, and eaten when firm. It's consistency is almost like an apple, very different than the hachiya.

The only type of persimmon to use in cooking is hachiya. You can use it in bread, muffins, pudding and ice cream. Persimmon pudding is delicious, very sweet and a wonderful ending to a special winter meal.

Persimmon Pudding

1 1/2 cups Hachiya persimmon puree
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 cup cream
3 eggs
1 Tablespoon of honey
2 Tablespoons maple syrup
1 1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon Rapadura
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
Generous grating of fresh nutmeg (a Microplane zester works well)
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 stick (6 Tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly (do this
in the oven while it is preheating)
1 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
1/3 to 1/2 cup golden sultana raisins

-Preheat oven to 325 degrees
-Grease a 8 or 9 inch springform pan very well with butter
-Optional for easier removal: Line the bottom with parchment paper and then butter the parchment.
-Mix beginning wet ingredients well with a whisk in a medium bowl
-In a larger bowl, stir all dry ingredients together with a fork to break up any lumps and fluff it up
-Add the wet ingredients to the dry a bit at a time and whisk well until all combined. Let the mixture stand for about 15 minutes to thicken up.
-Stir in the melted butter, walnuts, and raisins
-Pour into the pan and bake 60-90 minutes, until the edges of the cake start pulling away from the sides of the pan and it doesn't jiggle at all in the center anymore

Slice onto a serving plate and serve warm. The top will be a glossy brown and needs no more embellishment than a little whipped cream or crème fraîche. If you want to get racy, flavor the cream with Cognac. Meow.

Serves about 8