Persimmon Spice Bread

Persimmons are very popular in South Korea.  Anyone who is anyone is buying them.  You should really get on board.

When you do, you will find that there are two kinds.  One is very soft and squishy, like the picture on the right.  Others are more yellow and much more firm, like the ones below.

 When you do decide to buy them, try a few as they are.  That will make you a more cultured person.  When you're done and you realize that they are strange fruit that is a bit too squishy to enjoy, then you can join me in making and devouring this persimmon spice bread that will help use up all the persimmons you had to buy from the ajima who only sells them in large quantities.

They are a little too squishy for me, though they have a nice flavor.

So...I put them in a bread!

If you have access to these strange, squishy fruits, try this recipe.  It will taste like the Korean holidays visited your kitchen, and it's ever so tasty with coffee.

Ingredients

(As adapted from allrecipes)

2 eggs

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup canola oil

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (or almonds)

1/2 cup raisins

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup persimmon pulp

 

*Note: I used mostly spelt flour in my recipe, but you may use white, wheat, or spelt flour without changing the quantities*

 

If baking, preheat the oven to 325 degrees and oil a 9x4in pan.

If baking on the stove, Korean-style, oil two frying pans.

In a bowl combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, nuts, raisins, and salt.  

In a separate bowl blend eggs, sugar, and oil together.  If you have beaters, beat to combine.  Otherwise, use a fork like me a get a bit of an arm workout.

In a third container, measure out your persimmon pulp sans the skin and combine with the baking soda.  Make sure your baking soda is completely integrated into the pulp to avoid a chunk of baking soda in your bread.

Combine your persimmon and baking soda mixture into the egg mixture.  Then fold in the dry ingredients.  Fold until just combined to avoid overworking your batter. Then pour it into one prepared pan, using the other oiled pan as your lid.  Keep your heat as low as possible to avoid burning. 

Then make coffee.

 

 After about 4-5 minutes of "baking" on the stove, flip your pans so that your bottom pan becomes the top and vice versa.  Your bread will look like this:

Keep the pans sandwiched together to trap in heat.  

After a final four minutes on the stove, your bread should be done.  Check with a toothpick to see that the batter is cooked.  

When completed, flip your bread onto a cutting board or wire rack to cool.

And then enjoy it!

Persimmon Spice Bread