By Caron Golden
For The Union-Tribune
Full-blown autumn deserves a celebration of full-blown autumn flavors, like those from rich and nutty squash pumpkins, sweet juicy apples and earthy Brussels sprouts. For chef Ron Oliver of Chef Ron Oliver Catering, this time of year is all about the persimmon.
“Autumn is my favorite season,” he said. “Persimmons are just the sign of autumn in every aspect. It’s the color, that earthy orange color. And it’s what it goes with.
Persimmons go well with all the ingredients you normally think of as autumn, like ginger, cardamom, all the warm spices. And it’s so versatile. You can eat it out of hand, or you can make it very elegant.”
Fuyu persimmon (Adobe Stock)
Persimmons have become more commonplace in markets, but many people may have little, if any, experience with them. In San Diego, there’s almost no excuse. Their trees grow beautifully here, so if you don’t have neighbors growing them, head over to your local farmers market to buy them at their best (although they are usually plentiful in Asian markets, at Costco and in supermarkets). Oliver describes their flavor as “tropical with a very fragrant taste.”
What you’re looking for in particular are the Fuyu variety as opposed to Hachiyas. Fuyus are the squat versions that are known as non-astringent. When they are hard, you can eat them like an apple with the skin on. When softer, they can be turned into sauce; folded into cakes, tarts or muffins, or even turned into “custard” just by freezing them (that alone softens them).
Hachiyas are known as astringent. They’re longer and almost heart-shaped. It’s not that they’re not delicious — they are, but only once they’ve fully ripened, even what seems like overripened. The very ripe fruit will feel mushy and, in fact, the ripe texture is jellylike. But they are very tasty. They, too, can be used for baking or making sauces. Or slice off the top, grab a spoon and dip in for a sweet treat.
Persimmon Corn Muffins With Chile Pepita Butter, by San Diego chef Ron Oliver. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Here we’re focused on the Fuyu variety because they’re more versatile. In fact, they’re so versatile that if you’re hosting a holiday meal, you could use them for guest place cards.
“You can have Thanksgiving tablescape persimmons, ” Oliver said, laughing. “One year my mom put a persimmon where each person was going to sit. She placed them upside down and cut a little slit and inserted a card with each person’s name on it.”
Oliver is sharing three distinctive recipes — both savory and sweet. He pointed out that persimmons can be used in dishes that can also be made with other seasonal ingredients.
“I just started thinking of dishes that I would use, generally speaking, a fruit that had the texture of a pear or an apple or even a papaya,” he explained.
His Scallop Crudo With Persimmon Relish, Manchego Cheese and Pumpkin Seed Puree features a row of raw, sliced scallops lined on one side by a colorful, crunchy persimmon relish and on the other a brilliant green pumpkin seed, or pepita, puree, all garnished with sea salt and black pepper, shaved Manchego cheese and toasted pepitas.
The dish is a perfect appetizer year-round. Just switch out ingredients for the relish with papaya, jicama or cucumber, or whatever else is in season, Oliver suggested.
As for the scallops, Oliver calls for what’s known as U-10. The “U” stands for under. The number is the amount per pound. U-10s are among the largest and sometimes referred to as Super Colossal Scallops. For this recipe, which makes six servings, you need eight U-10s, which you’ll slice in horizontally into 4 pieces after removing the muscle from each. These muscles are easy to see. They look like little flaps and connect the mussel to the shell. Because they can be tough to chew, you just pull them off.
Even if you aren’t eating scallops raw, be sure to purchase them from a reputable seafood shop. Oliver buys his at Mainely Lobster and Seafood on Clairemont Mesa Boulevard in Kearny Mesa. He also recommends the frozen Hokkaido scallops at Costco. But wherever you buy them, Oliver said they should be eaten within 24 hours after bringing them home (or defrosting frozen ones). And, he added, keep them dry.
“This goes for all proteins,” he said. “I bring them to the kitchen, put them on paper towels and cover them with paper towels before refrigerating them. You don’t need ice at that point.”
The dish is very easy to prepare. Making the relish involves dicing persimmons, radishes and red bell peppers. They are mixed in a bowl with grated ginger, chopped tarragon leaves, minced chives, sherry wine vinegar and sherry wine, olive oil, and sea salt and black pepper. Cover and refrigerate until you’re ready to put the dish together, but at least an hour.
To make the pumpkin seed puree, you simply place toasted pumpkin seeds, olive oil and salt and pepper into an 8-ounce jar and puree it with a handheld immersion blender. If you don’t have one, use a mini food processor.
To serve, you will overlap the scallop slices in a line down the center of your serving plate. Spoon the relish down one side of the scallops and the pumpkin seed puree down the other. Season with salt and pepper, garnish with the thin slices of Manchego cheese and a scattering of pepitas, then spoon some of the juice from the relish around the scallops.
If you’ve never made an upside-down cake, Olivers recipe is an easy and very delicious introduction, and the deep-orange persimmon slices are like lovely stars glowing on the top. Oliver seasons the cake batter with warm, autumnal flavors of cardamom, ginger and brandy.
It’s not a true upside-down cake without caramel. Here, Oliver combines sugar, butter and a bit of water in a 10-inch oven-proof straight-sided (very important when baking a cake) skillet or a cake pan. Place that on the stove and add the caramel ingredients, which you’ll stir over medium-high heat until it turns golden brown. Take it off the heat and wait about 10 minutes for it to cool — although you can make it a day in advance and let it sit, covered, on the counter until you’re ready to bake.
The persimmons are sliced into 1/4-inch rounds and then placed on the cooled caramel. Oliver likes to fill the empty spaces between slices with berries.
Then you make the batter. Note that you’ll be separating the eggs so you can whip the whites to stiff peaks before folding them into the rest of the batter. Oliver uses a third of a cup of cake flour for the cake, but if you need to make it gluten-free, you can substitute the cake flour with half a cup of potato flour.
All that’s left is to bake the cake and, once it’s cooled, place the skillet or pan on the stove at medium-high heat to loosen the caramel — just 15 seconds or so. Then place your serving plate on top, hold it all together and quickly turn it over onto the counter, then remove the skillet or cake pan. The reveal is always a magical moment.
Finally, there’s Oliver’s lovely, crunchy Persimmon Corn Muffins With Chile Pepita Butter. Here he adds diced persimmons to a batter featuring cornmeal and corn flour, as well as buttermilk. If you want, you can slice persimmons and size them to the muffins with a round cookie cutter before baking — they look great with that extra little orange star on top. Serve them with chile pepita butter, made with softened unsalted butter, toasted chopped pepitas, chile powder and smoked sea salt. It’s a luxurious snack.
Scallop Crudo, topped with Manchego cheese, is flanked by persimmon relish and pumpkin seed puree. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Scallop Crudo With Persimmon Relish, Manchego Cheese and Pumpkin Seed Puree
Makes 6 servings
INGREDIENTS
For the persimmon relish:
1/2 cup finely diced peeled ripe Fuyu persimmons
1/4 cup finely diced radish
1/4 cup finely diced red bell pepper
2 teaspoons grated ginger
1 teaspoon chopped tarragon leaves (can substitute parsley, cilantro or basil)
1 tablespoon minced chives
1 teaspoon sherry wine vinegar
2 tablespoons sherry wine
1 tablespoon olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the pumpkin seed puree:
1/2 cup toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1/4 cup olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the sea scallops:
8 large sea scallops, size U-10
For the garnish:
2 tablespoons pumpkin seed puree
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons shaved Manchego cheese
2 tablespoons toasted pepitas
DIRECTIONS
1: Place serving platter in refrigerator to chill.
2: Make the persimmon relish: Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Cover. Refrigerate 1 hour.
3: Make the pumpkin seed puree: Place all ingredients in an 8-ounce jar. Use a handheld immersion blender to puree to a fine paste.
4: Prepare the scallops: Scallops have a little muscle that connects them to their shell. It sticks out a bit like a flap. Because it can be tough, pull the flap off with your fingers. Wash scallops by dipping in ice water. Pat dry with paper towels. Cut scallops horizontally into 4 slices each.
5: Arrange scallops in a line, overlapping each other, down the center of serving platter. Spoon relish along one side of scallops, reserving leftover relish dressing in the bowl. Drizzle pumpkin seed puree along the opposite side. Season scallops with salt and pepper. Garnish with Manchego cheese and pepitas.
6: Spoon reserved relish dressing around scallops.
Caramelized Persimmon Upside-Down Cake by San Diego chef Ron Oliver includes a cake batter seasoned with cardamom, ginger and brandy. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Caramelized Persimmon Upside-Down Cake
Makes 6 servings
INGREDIENTS
For the caramel:
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1 tablespoon water
For the persimmons:
2 large, ripe Fuyu persimmons
As needed: blueberries or blackberries
For the batter:
4 large eggs, separated
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 tablespoon grated ginger root
Zest of 1 orange
5 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided in half
1/4 cup brandy
1/3 cup cake flour, sifted
DIRECTIONS
1: Make the caramel: Add all ingredients to 10-inch, oven-proof, heavy, straight-sided skillet or a cake pan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring gently until golden brown.
2: Remove from heat. Cool 10 minutes or until caramel is hardened. You can make this a day ahead and let it sit, covered, on the counter.
3: Prepare the persimmons: Trim the stem end from persimmons. Slice persimmons into 1/4-inch-thick rounds.
4: Place the persimmon slices onto the surface of the caramel as tight as possible in a single layer. Fill in any empty spaces with berries.
5: Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
6: Make the batter: In large mixing bowl, whisk egg yolks, cardamom, ginger, orange zest and half the sugar until thick and ribbony. Slowly beat in the brandy. Stir in flour.
7: In a separate bowl, beat egg whites and remaining sugar to stiff peaks. Fold into yolk mixture.
8: Pour batter evenly over persimmons. Tap pan onto work surface to dislodge any air bubbles caught between the batter and the fruit.
9: Bake 30 minutes or until skewer inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Remove from oven. Let stand 15 minutes. Place skillet directly over medium heat 15 seconds or until caramel loosens and cake moves freely in the pan. Place large serving platter on top of skillet. Carefully and quickly invert cake onto serving platter. Slice berries in half lengthwise and place on cake plate around cake as garnish. Cut into wedges.
Note: For gluten-free, you can substitute potato flour but increase it to 1/2 cup.
Persimmon Corn Muffins With Chile Pepita Butter. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Persimmon Corn Muffins With Chile Pepita Butter
Makes about 36 mini muffins or 2 dozen conventional size muffins
INGREDIENTS
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup corn flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup melted butter
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
3 large eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups Fuyu persimmons, peeled and 1/4-inch diced
Chile Pepita Butter, for serving (recipe follows)
Optional: 1/4-inch-thick Fuyu persimmon slices
Note: Oliver recommends Somos Maiz (@somosmaizsd on Instagram), a local business, for freshly milled heirloom cornmeal and corn flour.
DIRECTIONS
1: Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2: Add all dry ingredients to mixing bowl. Use a whisk to combine and eliminate any clumps.
3: Add vegetable oil to separate large mixing bowl. Whisk in the melted butter. Whisk in the buttermilk and beaten eggs. Add the dry ingredients and whisk to combine. Stir in the diced persimmons.
4: Scoop mixture into lightly sprayed muffin pans, filling 2/3 full. Bake until nicely brown on top, about 18 minutes for minis or 22 minutes for conventional size. Let cool 10 minutes before unmolding. Serve with Chile Pepita Butter.
Optional: Cut persimmon slices with round cookie cutter and place atop muffin batter before baking.
Chile Pepita Butter
INGREDIENTS
1 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup finely chopped toasted pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1 teaspoon chile powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked sea salt
DIRECTIONS
Combine all ingredients in mixing bowl. Let sit at room temperature until butter is soft enough to mash. Use tines of a fork to mash and mix the butter. Transfer to serving bowl, smoothing out the top. Sprinkle with additional chile powder if desired.
Recipes by Ron Oliver.