What spices do you like with persimmon?

[Smithy]

I have a series of old recipes for Hachiya persimmons.  I'm getting ready to use a windfall of those persimmons in a few baking projects.  The suite of spices called for in the cake and cookie recipes is cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice.  I like cinnamon.  I like nutmeg and allspice in small touches but they can be overdone for my taste.  Cloves I detest, and I'm going to leave them out.  That makes me wonder, however, whether I can take this recipe in another sweet direction altogether.  What other spice combination might I use with persimmons to make a nice baked product - sweet but not jarringly so?

 

Suggestions, anyone?

[cakewalk]

Cardamom and/or saffron might be nice. And ginger. I'm interested in what you might bake. I can remember trying to bake loaf cakes with persimmon pulp a very long time ago. They were good, but there was no discernible persimmon flavor. It did add moisture and texture. I cannot remember what I did, it was too long ago and I was just winging it.

[kayb]

I was going to say cardamom as well.

 

[Darienne]

Heck, I was just going for cardamom also.  Love it.  It's wonderful in nut/seed brittles also.

[blue_dolphin]

I like citrus (lemon or orange zest & juice) and ginger with persimmon. 

Persimmon, vanilla and coconut is also a nice combination - add a squeeze of lemon or lime for tartness if it's too sweet.  I used this in some popsicles but have seen it in cake recipes, too.

I think star anise would be lovely with persimmon.  Having made a coriander simple syrup recently, I'd like to try that flavor with persimmon for something a little unexpected.

 

I have no arguments with the cardamom crowd either 

[Okanagancook]

2 hours ago, Smithy said:

I have a series of old recipes for Hachiya persimmons.  I'm getting ready to use a windfall of those persimmons in a few baking projects.  The suite of spices called for in the cake and cookie recipes is cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice.  I like cinnamon.  I like nutmeg and allspice in small touches but they can be overdone for my taste.  Cloves I detest, and I'm going to leave them out.  That makes me wonder, however, whether I can take this recipe in another sweet direction altogether.  What other spice combination might I use with persimmons to make a nice baked product - sweet but not jarringly so?

 

Suggestions, anyone?

It's a Chef's Life with Vivian Howard, 2017 season has an episode on persimmons.  You can see it on line.  

[heidih]

When I eat a raw Fuyu I always taste a hint of warm spices. I like the combination in this pumpkin pie spice mix.

[MelissaH]

Add me to the cardamom parade!

[dcarch]

Persimmon as a fruit is not a very strong tasting fruit.  unlike apples, bananas, strawberries, oranges, mangoes, pineapples etc., any spice can easily mask it's taste.

I would not use any strong flavored spice, and certainly  very sparingly used if you must.

 

I do like to buy dehydrated persimmons from an Asian store, chop them up and add to my persimmon recipes, kind of like raisins.

 

dcarch

 

[Smithy]

I want to thank everyone for the suggestions.  I ended up using cardamamom, coriander, ginger (including crystallized ginger in place of raisins), a touch of saffron and a pinch of Berbere seasoning.  My persimmon bread went over very well - but, in fairness to dcarch, I must admit that one person thought it was ginger bread and another knew it had fruit but wasn't sure what type! Maybe I could have worked out a way to intensify the persimmon flavor. I still liked it better than our family's classic persimmon bread, which is seasoned with cinnamon and nutmeg (but not, as I'd previously thought, cloves). I think it's the nutmeg that put me off.

 

 

I have more puree, frozen, with which to experiment.

[cakewalk]

The Berbere seasoning is a very nice idea. I'm wondering if persimmon curd is a doable thing to serve alongside the cake. Or maybe just some sliced persimmons.  

[Smithy]

9 minutes ago, cakewalk said:

The Berbere seasoning is a very nice idea. I'm wondering if persimmon curd is a doable thing to serve alongside the cake. Or maybe just some sliced persimmons.  

 

I like the persimmon curd idea. I've been thinking that persimmon puree would be a nice cheesecake topping if I could make it stiff enough (persimmon and sour cream, perhaps?) Persimmon curd would have a better texture.

[ChocoMom]

Cardamom would be the spice I'd go for.  It lends a kind of sweetness to Nisu, and I suspect it would pair well with persimmons.

[Cronker]

Yep, being original- cardamom,

what about yuzu?  It's hard to find here, not sure about where you are.

for something very unusual, what about something done with cucumber- perhaps an ice cream?

[paulraphael]

Cardamom is my first thought too.

 

Actually my second. At first I read the thread as "what spice do you like with permission?" which got me thinking of which forbidden spices I might like even more.

 

 

Also maybe cloves, chilis, cinnamon, ginger, or nutmeg.

Edited March 3, 2018 by paulraphael (log)