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Sweet persimmon crisp makes most of just-picked Fuyus

Recipe: December is peak season for this unusual fruit

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED DEC 2, 2018

Persimmon crisp makes use of Fuyus in their just-picked crisp stage.
(Photos: Debbie Arrington)

Fuyu persimmons -- those flat, fat cousins to pointy Hachiyas -- are easy to love.

Crisp and crunchy or soft as custard, Fuyus can be eaten right off the tree or weeks later. Think of them as bright orange-fleshed apples, but with a very different flavor.

Ideally suited to Sacramento's climate, Fuyus grow on an attractive small tree -- a member of the ebony family -- with colorful red and orange fall foliage. The shiny orange fruit are pretty as well as delicious. That makes Fuyu a good choice for edible landscaping.

Fuyu persimmons are a much more versatile fruit than Hachiyas, which can be eaten only when their tannin-packed pulp turns to jelly. (That neutralizes their pucker power.)

Yet overwhelmingly, most persimmon recipes call for mashed pulp, not crisp sliced fruit.

I have a handsome Fuyu tree packed with fruit, which sent me searching for possibilities to cook now -- not in a few weeks after the fruit softens to pulp stage. After some experimentation, I came up with this dessert. This crisp is meant for crisp persimmons, not the ooey, gooey ones.

Besides on backyard trees, Fuyus also are in abundance at farmers markets. December is their peak season.

Fuyus taste very much like Hachiyas but without the tannin bite. It's a delicate sweetness like floral honey. Sliced and cooked, the fruit retains its bright orange color.

Like extra-juicy apples, Fuyus need some thickener such as cornstarch or tapioca to absorb that juiciness when cooked. Lemon juice helps balance out the overt honey sweetness.

Crisp persimmon crisp
Makes 8 to 12 servings

Ingredients:

6 Fuyu persimmons, peeled and thinly sliced (about 6 cups)
Zest and juice of one lemon
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

For topping:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
1 cup quick oats
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a 10-inch pie plate or 9-inch square baking dish.

Toss sliced persimmons with lemon juice. In a large bowl, combine cornstarch, sugars, cinnamon and lemon zest. Add persimmon slices and mix to coat. Set aside.

Make topping. Combine brown sugar, flour and oats in a bowl. Cut in butter or margarine until crumbly mixture forms.

It may look like peach crisp, but it's all persimmons.

Transfer persimmon slices to prepared baking dish. Top with crumble mixture.

Place baking dish on top of a rimmed cookie sheet (just in case crisp bubbles over). Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until top is browned and juices bubbling.

Serve warm or cold with whipped cream.

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RECIPE

A recipe for preparing delicious meals from the bounty of the garden.

Keywords:

baking recipes recipe gardening trees foliage seasonal cooking Sacramento fall fruit persimmons farmers markets produce management

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Garden Checklist for week of Nov. 3

November still offers good weather for fall planting:

* If you haven't already, it's time to clean up the remains of summer. Pull faded annuals and vegetables. Prune dead or broken branches from trees.

* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.

* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.

* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.

* Plant garlic and onions.

* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.

* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.

* Rake and compost leaves, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.

* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.

* For holiday blooms indoors, plant paperwhite narcissus bulbs now. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with 2 inches of rocks or pebbles. Place bulbs in the dish with the root end nestled in the rocks. Add water until it just touches the bottom of the bulbs. Place the dish in a sunny window. Add water as needed.

* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.

* For larger blooms, pinch off some camellia buds.

* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.

* To help prevent leaf curl, apply a copper fungicide spray to peach and nectarine trees after they lose their leaves this month. Leaf curl, which shows up in the spring, is caused by a fungus that winters as spores on the limbs and around the tree in fallen leaves. Sprays are most effective now.

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