It seems like you wait forever for persimmons to ripen, and then when they finally do, there is this short period of time between the ripe stage and the rotten stage. I found myself at the end of this window, so I decided to try 2 different recipes.
The first was for Persimmon Pudding. An interesting dish, which seems to have originated in Indiana, persimmon pudding is more like a pancake than anything else. I thought it was ok, but not great - the whipped cream part was good, though.
The second recipe I received from my friend Kristina - Persimmon Cookies from the Fanny Farmer Cookbook. These turned out great - similar to a pumpkin cookie, with walnuts and raisins and a nice spice glaze. It gave me a chance to use my Mace, a spice which does not often see the light of day, and they were very good.
The thing about using persimmons in recipes is that they seem to get stuck in a rut in much the same way that pumpkin does - always paired with cinnamon/ginger/clove-type spices, so that everything you make with time tastes pretty much the same. That said, this is definitely a good cookie recipe, and worth a try. I found that letting the spice glaze cool with the cookies, then brushing on a bit more later gave a nice whitish appearance, since otherwise the glaze just disappears into the cookie.
PERSIMMON COOKIES
Source:-The Fanny Farmer Baking Book
1 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup peeled and chopped persimmon (about 2 large or 3 or 4 small
persimmons)
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp powdered ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup raisins
Spice Glaze (below)
Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease some cookie sheets.
Source:-The Fanny Farmer Baking Book
1 cup vegetable shortening
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup peeled and chopped persimmon (about 2 large or 3 or 4 small
persimmons)
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp powdered ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup raisins
Spice Glaze (below)
Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease some cookie sheets.
Combine the shortening and sugars and beat until thoroughly blended.
Add the egg and beat well, then beat in the persimmon pulp.
Stir and toss together the flour, salt, soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.
Add to the first mixture, and beat until completely mixed.
Stir in walnuts and raisins.
Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies have puffed & browned slightly.
Brush each with the Spice Glaze, then transfer to racks to cool.
