Easy Persimmon Crisp Recipe

Persimmon crisp
Originally uploaded by love_yellow

OK, I promise this will be the last post on persimmons this season but I wanted to share this...

When I have a huge bounty of fruit I like to make "crisps" because it maximizes the amount of fruit you use in the recipe. Unlike a cake or cookie where you have a lot of other "fillers" - like flour, sugar, eggs, butter, etc.

Why don't I just eat it raw you say?

I do. However, during the harvesting process much of the fruit falls to ground and get damaged. The cracked and bruised fruit are perfectly good but I can't eat them fast enough. They tend to rot very quickly and end up throwing them away. So instead of discarding them, I like to salvage the parts of the fruit that are still good and either freeze it or cook with it. I've done this with other fruit too because I have apple and plum trees that like to produce a ton of fruit every other year.

I searched and tried many crisp recipes and have arrived at a recipe modification that I like best because, as usual, I've decreased the sugar and increased the fiber. Fruit is naturally so sweet, why would you need to add more sugar? But I do like how the brown sugar caramelizes with the butter to add that extra punch of wonderful flavor in the crisp topping.

INGREDIENTS
Topping:
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
¼ cup whole wheat flour
½ cup rolled oats
¼ cup ground flax seed or oat bran
¼ cup (packed) golden brown sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom (optional)
¼ teaspoon salt
5 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

Fruit:
2½-3 pounds persimmon, cut into cubes/chunks about ½ to 1-inch in size
1 tablespoon cornstarch or tapioca starch

PREPARATION
For topping:
Mix first 9 ingredients in large bowl. Add butter and rub in with fingertips until small moist clumps form. Cover and refrigerate 20 minutes.

For fruit:
Preheat oven to 400°F. Toss persimmon chunks and starch in bowl. Transfer persimmon mixture to 11x7-inch glass baking dish. Sprinkle topping over. Bake until topping is dark golden brown and fruit is bubbling, about 40 minutes. Transfer crisp to rack and cool slightly, about 30 minutes.

It tastes great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Persimmon-themed Dinner

When we got the last huge bounty 2 years ago (every other year seems to be the cycle) I had some friends over and prepared a dinner with a persimmon theme. It was a hit!

1st course: sushi (no persimmons).

2nd course: salad with prosciutto, organic greens, a round slice of persimmon (like a flower) and pistachios w/ oil & vinegar.

3rd course: macadamia & panko crusted salmon w/ spicy persimmon chutney - baked garlic shiitake mushrooms on the side and brown rice lightly fried in a little coconut oil, with tofu and pine nuts.

Dessert: vanilla ice cream with fresh persimmon chunks and toasted almonds, served with green tea.

Persimmons galore!

Persimmons galore!
Originally uploaded by love_yellow

One of my favorite things about the fall season is the Fuyu persimmons that grow on the 2 trees in my parents' backyard. The Fuyu variety is the smaller and firmer fruit (and to me, more edible and easier to eat), as opposed the Hachiya which ripens into a mushy and gelatinous mess.

They are so beautiful to look at - the various shades of orange, from light golden orange to a deep red-orange, depending on its ripeness. And the shape of the fruit is lovely, looking a bit like a tomato or apple sometimes, but I hate to compare them to other fruit. They are just so photogenic, I may have taken hundreds of photos of them.

I'm always amazed at the huge bounty we get every other year. It takes a break in the off years, bearing only about 20 pieces of fruit in the case of last year. I guess it needs to "rest" and regenerate its energy to produce more the following year.

This year the trees have gone bonkers and today we picked about 200 of them. Unfortunately about 25% of them fall so hard to the ground that they get battered and bruised. I salvaged as many of the battered ones as I could and will try to consume them quickly before they get moldy. I've been scanning the internet for good and healthy recipes. If you know of any please let me know!

A friend of my just emailed me and suggested I slice them up thinly and serve them with prosciutto. I bet that would look really pretty - can't wait to try that one. Maybe I'll place them on a platter along with a small chunk of cheese. Thanks Deb for the great idea!

Two years ago I added chunks of persimmon in the cranberry sauce for Thanksgiving. I've also made a persimmon crisp - it uses up a lot of fruit, unlike a cake or cookies which has other "fillers" like flour, butter and sugar. ;-)  A crisp is pretty much pure fruit with a nice topping of a little whole wheat flour mixed with rolled oats, butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and walnuts. I also add a little flax seed and keep the sugar to a minimum because the fruit is already sweet enough. But the sugar caramelizes and adds a nice touch of flavor that compliments this fruit especially well. I'll be making that crisp soon and will be sure to post the recipe!