Autumn Harvest

Remember this post where I said I hoped I would get to eat some fresh nashi and persimmons when I visited the countryside?  Oh boy did I feed that craving!


On Saturday while driving from Kaya I was chatting with the Yoshidas (in broken Japanese...here I was thinking I had remembered so much, but spending an entire weekend immersed in Japanese really showed me how much I have forgotten in a year and a half!) and I pointed out the persimmon trees.  They asked if I liked persimmons, and when I said I loved them, we took a quick detour to their house to pick some off of their trees before dark.

 
Kumi and Masami have two trees in front of their house, but explained that this variety wasn't good for eating off the tree.  They needed to be peeled, hung and dried (also a delicious way to eat persimmons!!)
 

I borrowed a pair of rubber boots and we set off down the lane with our baskets and bags to their three persimmon trees.  Masami climbed up to get the fruit at the top, and Kumi and I picked the ones we could reach from the ground.


When we had filled all of our baskets, we headed back to the house.  I couldn't resist eating one on the way! 


Before leaving the next day, Kumi set aside a bag full of persimmons for me to take back with me.  I must have looked a sight carrying a heavy shopping bag full of persimmons on the bus and train rides home...so worth the effort though!!  I've been eating them as is, but I am curious to try them in some other types of recipes too.  Any ideas?

My dear friends and lovely hosts for the weekend!

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