A time to be thankful ... and a recipe to go along!

We have lived in our house for a little over two years now. There is a tree in our backyard that grows these small sized fruit like things that would fall to the ground, mash under our shoes and eventually get raked up with the leaves.

Low and behold ... they are persimmons! My Mom realized it this week (I'm kinda surprised it took her this long ... she's pretty good with plants, trees, fruits and veggies). So, we grabbed a colander and went to picking. Picking up from the ground, not picking off the tree. This fruit is at its best as soon as it falls from the tree. Needless to say I am now out there every afternoon with a bowl to pick up more!

I've already missed out on the majority of them this year but better late than never, right?

My Grandma used to make persimmon pudding. I'm going to try my hand at that next year, I believe. For now, I am making batches of persimmon butter, canning them and giving them to family for this fall. It's a lot like apple butter ... full of delicious, fall spices. If you have never had either, use it as a jelly or jam. Spread it on toast, rolls, homemade biscuits (or store bought ... like me!)

I have always had a lot of appreciation and thankfulness towards my grandparents for their love of gardening and canning. But after making this and preparing to can for the very first time, I can't even begin to explain how full my heart feels after really realizing the dedication and passion they truly had towards something they loved so much. Their gardening and canning kept our family full, healthy and happy for many years. It's time like these that makes me miss them more than ever. I think they would be pretty proud of me ...

Want the recipe? Okay! But please don't ask me where to buy persimmons because I have no idea!

Persimmon Butter -

Ingredients -
3 cups persimmon pulp
3/4 cups apple cider
1 1/4 firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions-
1. Peel and pulp persimmons through a strainer/colander. (This is the most tedious part ... make sure none go to waste!)

2. Combine all ingredients in a large pot, mix well and bring to a boil.
3. After bringing mixture to a boil, turn down to low, cook and stir often for roughly 45 minutes.

I found the above recipe and canning instructions here.

 my finished product!