Winter Forage: Persimmons
Persimmons are unique in that they become ripe and drop after the first frost, making them the perfect winter fruit. Persimmons are quite common in Indiana. In fact, there’s a whole festival dedicated...
The important thing to remember about persimmons is that you must make sure the fruit is ripe before eating it. Judging the ripeness of persimmons is very different than that of your typical supermarket fruit because they must be very soft and mushy before they’re any good. Unripe persimmons are so astringent that they make your mouth shrivel and pucker. But if you’re patient, ripe persimmons are very sweet which makes them great for jams, chutneys, sauces, baked goods, and other desserts.
Ingredients
- 2 cups persimmon pulp
- 2 cups sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 and 1/2 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 and 1/2 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 cup of melted butter
- 1/4 cup of half and half
Instructions
1. Cream together pulp, sugar and eggs.
2. Put soda into buttermilk and stir until frothy.
3. Sift dry ingredients together.
4. Add dry ingredients and buttermilk alternately to pulp mixture.
5. Add butter and half and half.
6. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour in a 9-inch by 13-inch pan.
Recipe adapted from Cynthia Brewer King, 2013 Persimmon Festival winner
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