Persimmon Pudding, Ginger or Spiced?

For some of us, persimmon is an unusual fruit and is often misunderstood. This is probably related to having eaten an unripe Hachiya which leaves a sour, mouth-puckering taste. A quick browse of the internet reveals quite a lot of history of the persimmon fruit. It has had many uses including making beer and wine, and is used in bread making! An early mention is in the journals of Hernando de Soto’s expedition. In the 1800s, persimmon beer was familiar enough that it had developed a nickname,“possum toddy.” This was a reference to a place where opossums are commonly found in the fall…in persimmon trees – eating the fruit!

An interesting folklore story was the use of persimmons as a weather forecasting tool. Splitting a persimmon seed will reveal a fork, spoon, or knife on the seed’s interior. According to lore, the image of a spoon indicates that the upcoming winter will feature an abundance of heavy, wet snow; a fork predicts light and powdery snow, and a knife forecasts a winter with bitter, icy winds. What does your persimmon reveal?

Meanwhile, back at the farm, we found another use for persimmons. We were making puddings! The team used 196 pounds of Fuyu persimmons and made two different types of puddings: Ginger and Spiced.

On Christmas Eve, the farm stand offered samples to everyone passing by. No one could resist! Both puddings, Persimmon Ginger and Persimmon Spice, were a huge hit.

The team needed some muscle for the pudding process and we’re grateful to Amrit for his help.