December 6, 2010: Persimmon Cornbread

We received the first snow of the season today in New York City. When I opened my curtains this morning, it wasn't snowing yet, but I knew it would be falling soon.  They're just soft flurries, barely visible, but sometime even the tiniest amount of snow can melt my heart.

When I noticed the snow I was in the kitchen working on Persimmon Cornbread.

Thank you God for persimmons, and for cornmeal, and cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, and all the other warming spices too.

Persimmons are in season, and my boss enjoys sending us home with a couple at a time.  I absolutely love their sugary sweetness and gooey flesh.

Originally I was going to make a Persimmon Ginger Bundt cake for my co-workers.  But this morning I saw that my persimmons were extra ripe, and I had nothing for breakfast, and then I started to crave warm cornbread.  With that said, I did a little research and came up with a recipe for the perfect Persimmon Cornbread.
This recipe is adapted from Joy the Baker's recipe for Ginger Persimmon Bread.  I used the same measurements for most of the it, though I chose to use less sugar and only one egg.  This recipe can easily become vegan, by substituting an egg replacer such as Ener-G or flax seed.  Joy uses 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour, and I use 1 cup Spelt and 1/2 cup cornmeal for an amazingly moist and crumbly cornbread. 

I used Spelt flour because we use it at Peacefood Cafe, and it creates the softest and lightest muffins and scones.  Spelt is lower in gluten than wheat flour making it easier for most of us to digest, it is also high in vitamin B2 and manganese.

To be honest, I wasn't confident this cornbread would be a success.  To create the Persimmon pulp, I blended one seeded and "de-crowned" persimmon.  Following Joy's instructions, in a small bowl I mixed 1/2 cup of pulp with 1 tsp of Baking Soda to thicken the pulp.  The pulp was certainly thickened! It actually turned into a mold that I had to put back into the blender with 1/3 cup water to return it to a mushy pulp.  I just want to give you that warning. In the posted recipe I adjusted the persimmon pulp & baking soda technique. Also, the batter seemed too thick and dry, but baked up just fine. When I make this bread again I'm going to add the baking soda to the dry mixture instead to see what happens.  If you try it at home, I'd be interested in hearing your feedback.

I'm so glad the recipe worked out, because I was really hungry by the time it came out of the oven.  Moist, crumbly, and with a slight sweetness that rests on your taste buds after you've savored the warm spice.  I think I'll use this recipe throughout the year, substituting different fruits when persimmon is no longer in season. 

Persimmon Cornbread

(adapted from Joy the Baker's recipe)

1/2 cup Persimmon Pulp 

1 tsp Baking Soda

1/3 cup water

1 cup Spelt Flour

1/2 Cornmeal

1/2 tsp Salt

1/2 cup Brown Sugar

1/2 cup Canola Oil

1 large Egg 

1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp freshly grated Nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp freshly grated Ginger

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack on upper third of oven.  

Grease and flour a 8x8x2 or 9x4x3-inch loaf pan. 

For Persimmon Pulp

Clean and remove seeds and stem from the ripe fruit. 

In a blender or food processor, puree.  Mix with 1/3 cup of water and set aside 1/2 cup of puree in a small bowl. 

In a large bowl, blend flour, cornmeal, and salt.  

In a medium bowl, blend sugar, oil, egg.  Then add the spices and fresh ginger.  

Now, stir 1 tsp of baking soda into the persimmon pulp.  Wisk this into the wet mixture.

Pour wet mixture into the dry ingredients, and fold to combine.  When all of the flour has been incorporated, pour the thick batter into baking pan, and stick it in the oven for 30 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.  

Joy suggests cooling in the pan for 15 minutes, then placing it on a cooling rack until served.