Persimmon Nut Bread Made Me Nuts

Have you ever eaten a fresh persimmon?  They are fantastic.  My grandparents used to have a persimmon tree in their backyard and when they were in season, my cousin and I would pick them off the tree, wipe them with our shirt and start eating them.  They are very sweet, but you have to make sure that they are ripened otherwise they have a "funny" taste and you wouldn't want to eat them again!

 Persimmon Flower (image from wikipedia)

I have personally seen two different types of persimmon in the U.S. - the flatter one (which I used to eat in Iran) and the heart-shaped one or Hachiya persimmon.  It's best to leave this fruit at room temperature until it's soft and ready to eat.  Persimmons are eaten fresh, dried, raw or cooked. When eaten fresh they are usually eaten whole like an apple or cut into quarters, though with some varieties it is best to peel the skin first.  One way to consume very ripe persimmons, which can have the texture of pudding, is to remove the top leaf with a paring knife and scoop out the flesh with a spoon.  Riper persimmons can also be eaten by removing the top leaf, breaking the fruit in half and eating from the inside out.  The flesh ranges from firm to mushy, and the texture is unique.  The flesh is very sweet and when firm due to being unripe, possesses an apple-like crunch.  Persimmons contain high levels of dietary fiber, potassium, magnesium, calcium, iron and manganese.  They are also rich in vitamin C and beta carotene. 

Fresh Persimmons

During my last trip at Costco, I bought one box of each kind!  I have been eating one persimmon a day (sometimes even two).  I still have plenty of persimmons that I left out to ripen.  So naturally, I wanted to do something different with them.  A while back, a friend of mine, shared a great berry-nut bread recipe with me that I improvised and have been using for all kinds of berries and nut combinations.  I decided to incorporate my leftover persimmons in this recipe and see what happens.  This recipe has not been tried yet as I'm writing this blog!  It can either be a hit or miss... so, let's find out together ;)

So my first attempt was a disaster!  It came out pretty horrible and gooey - not exactly what you expect from a bread!  My toothpick test passed (after allowing additional 10-minute baking), so I pulled the loaf out of the oven.  I let the loaf cool and watching it slowly deflate - not a good sign probably.  As I was trying to cut a slice, my knife wasn't doing its job since it was too sticky.  I should've known as I was pouring the batter into the pan... it just didn't seem to have the consistency that I normally get.  Persimmons also have a lot of water in them and that's exactly what happened...  So, back to the drawing board! By the way, have I ever mentioned that I am not good at baking?  Cooking comes much easier to me than baking since I like to taste as I move along. 

1st try = disaster

Since I hate wasting food, I decided to slice the loaf and put them back in the oven until the gooey portion bakes and becomes firm.  That way, I could also taste them and change the recipe as needed; hence the above picture!

Okay, it's now 4 days later... I "adjusted" the recipe and it was a success!  What a relief - I was so worried about wasting ingredients.  Below is the "good" recipe and result and the great thing is that it tastes pretty good.  What I liked about it was that it gives you that cozy holiday season feel without adding too many seasonal ingredients. 

Persimmon Nut Bread

1-3/4 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup sugar

¼ teaspoon cardamom powder

¼ cup melted butter

1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup apple juice       

1 ripened Hachiya persimmon – scooped out and puréed in food processor
½ cup chopped walnuts

Persimmon scooped out with spoon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly butter a 9 ½ x 6 loaf pan.  Mix the dry ingredients.  Mix the 2nd group of ingredients – make sure the melted butter is cooled before adding the egg, otherwise you might end up with scrambled egg!  Then add to the flour mixture and mix well.  If using a mixer, use the paddle attachment on a low speed.  Stir in the persimmon purée and walnuts using a spatula.  Bake for 50 minutes until the toothpick comes out clean.  Cool and remove from pan.

Persimmon Nut Bread

Enjoy and have a wonderful week.