5 Ingredients or Fewer

Roasted Persimmons with Brown Butter and Cinnamon

by:
January 21, 2013
0
0 Ratings
  • Serves 2 to 4
Author Notes

Like most fruit, persimmons take well to roasting, which concentrates their natural sugars into a much more complex sweetness. Roasting can transform imperfect specimens (i.e., the persimmons available at my grocery store right now) into something really good. And roasting with brown butter...well, that makes about anything better in my opinion.  To the brown butter, I added cinnamon, vanilla and a bit of maple syrup to create a sauce of sorts.  It's a dead simple preparation that has many possibilities. You can serve as is, scatter some chopped pistachios or almonds on top, or serve with a big dollop of creme fraiche.  Spoon over French toast or waffles.  Or my personal favorite, ladle them generously over vanilla ice cream, making sure to get every last bit of sauce. —EmilyC

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 3 or 4 just-ripe Fuyu persimmons, peeled and cut into small wedges
  • 3 T unsalted butter
  • 2 T maple syrup (grade B)
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste (or half of a vanilla bean, seeds scraped)
  • sea salt and lemon juice, to taste
Directions
  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  2. In a skillet just large enough to fit the persimmon wedges, melt butter over medium heat until it turns brown and nutty, about 5 minutes. Add the persimmon wedges, and cook, without moving, until they're lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Flip, and cook, without moving, until the other sides are lightly browned, another 3 minutes or so.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, cinnamon and vanilla bean paste (or seeds from vanilla bean).
  4. Once the persimmon wedges are lightly browned, add the maple syrup, cinnamon and vanilla to the skillet. Stir gently to evenly integrate with the brown butter.
  5. Transfer skillet to oven, and roast until the persimmons are tender and caramelized and the sauce is bubbling and starting to thicken, about 8 to 10 minutes. Total roasting time will depend on the ripeness of your persimmons, so take one out and sneak a taste to decide.
  6. Remove from oven, and finish with sea salt, to taste. (I also like adding a few drops of lemon juice for balance.) Serve warm. See headnote for serving suggestions.
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  • hardlikearmour
    hardlikearmour
  • fiveandspice
    fiveandspice
  • EmilyC
    EmilyC
  • k s
    k s
EmilyC

Recipe by: EmilyC

I'm a home cook. I love salads. Two things you'll always find in my refrigerator are lemons and butter, and in my pantry good quality chocolate and the makings for chocolate chip cookies.

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7 Reviews

k S.
k S. January 22, 2013
Oh wow! Just the other day I noticed bags of imperfect persimmons on my local farm market's past-prime shelf- I know what I'm making tomorrow! Thanks Emily, yet another stunning recipe!
And I second your note about brown butter, I think my love of it might be bordering on an addiction :)
 
EmilyC
EmilyC January 22, 2013
Thanks for the kind words! Your note about brown butter made me laugh...I'm right there with you. It was a brown butter weekend for me -- salted toffee & brown butter rice krispie treats followed by this. So much for new year's resolutions! : )
 
hardlikearmour
hardlikearmour January 22, 2013
Yum! What a lovely combination of flavors.
 
EmilyC
EmilyC January 22, 2013
Thanks HLA! I knew I'd like the brown butter - maple syrup roasting part, but what surprised me a bit was how well the cinnamon complements the persimmons. And the aroma that wafts from the oven is reason enough to try these IMO.
 
fiveandspice
fiveandspice January 22, 2013
Perfect! What a great idea Emily! I love this.
 
EmilyC
EmilyC January 22, 2013
Thanks 5&s! I intended to make a nice, healthy salad with my persimmons but then I thought about brown butter and I got way derailed. Oh well!
 
fiveandspice
fiveandspice January 22, 2013
Yes, brown butter will do that to a person... :)