Persimmon Tea Bread

Adapted from Raymond Sokolov's Fading Feast

The persimmon provides all the spice you need in this simple sweet bread.

1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup persimmon pulp*
2 cups flour
3 Teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soada
1/2 cup cooking oil or melted butter
3/4 cup chopped nuts
1 cup raisins (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Beat together sugar, eggs, and persimmon pulp. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda.

3. Combine pulp mixture and dry ingredients, then stir in oil. Mix well (I alternate adding dry ingredients and oil/butter in three parts. Don't over mix). Add nuts and raisins. Pour batter into greased loaf pan and bake 45-50 minutes our until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

*Borrow a food mill from The Hub Tool Share to extract the pulp from the seeds and and skins.

Persimmon Waffles (AKA The Persaffle*)

Adapted from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything

2 cups all purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons sugar

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1 ½-2 cups milk (or buttermilk)

½ cup (or more) persimmon pulp

2 eggs, separated

4 Tablespoons (½ stick) butter, melted and cooled

1 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

Combine the dry ingredients, making sure there are no lumps in the baking powder.

Separate the eggs, and beat the egg whites until stiff with an electric mixer, or by hand with a whisk. Mix the yolks with the milk and persimmon. Add the melted butter to the liquid mixture, and the vanilla (if using). Stir the wet ingredients into the dry. If the mixture seems too thick to pour, add a little more milk.

Spread a ladleful or so of batter onto the waffle iron (pre-oil it if yours tends to stick) and cook until the waffle is done, usually 3-5 minutes. Check for your preference of doneness, you can leave it in longer if you like crispy outsides. Serve immediately or keep warm for a few minutes in a low oven.

Serve with pure maple syrup, melted butter & honey, jam or molasses.

Thanks to Jason Nickey for coining the term "persaffle"