There is something special about family food memories. I used to love visiting my maternal grandma. She was a no-nonsense woman who shared her love through food more than words. She made the best jams and jellies from fruit grown either in her garden or wild berries my grandpa gathered down by the creek. But my favorite food memory with Grandma was her persimmon cookies. She would keep persimmon pulp in her freezer just so she could make my favorite treat whenever we visited. Of course, I didn’t know that at the time. I just knew she made the best cookies that were soft and just a little sticky and so yummy. They were small drop cookies with persimmon moistening the batter much like pumpkin does in pumpkin bread. Add some sugar, cinnamon, and raisins and they became a delicious treat.
When she passed (at age 102!), I asked my uncle to send me her recipe if he could find it. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to find it. A few years later, I found a recipe online that created a very similar cookie. It might not be exactly the same, but it is close enough to elicit those tender memories.
Persimmon Cookies
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup persimmon pulp*
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup raisins
*Note – Use hachiya persimmons for baking. They are the more elongated ones. (Think Roma tomato as opposed to a round, garden tomato.) Let them get overripe (you’ll need about 3) and squeeze the pulp right out of the skin and puree with a blender or food processor.
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease or line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, soda, salt and spices; set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, cream the shortening with the sugar using a hand mixer. Beat in egg then beat in persimmon pulp. Slowly beat in the flour mixture until everything is combined. By hand, stir in the raisins.
4. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets. They can be placed close together because these cookies don’t spread much.
5. Bake for approximately 12-15 minutes. Let cool on baking sheets for five minutes and then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 24-36 small cookies
Do you have special family food memories?
These sound delicious!
I remember making biscuits with my grandma.
Yum! I adore biscuits. My dad was the biscuit maker in our family. He didn’t do much cooking, but biscuits were one of his few specialties. He always cut them out with the top of a drinking glass, so when I started making them, that’s I how I did it, too. Who knew there were actual cutters for that king of thing? Ha!
Yes! My paternal grandmother was a working mom (I’m guessing she retired at 65) and didn’t spend as much time in the kitchen as a stay at home mom would’ve. She baked great date nut bread, Grape Nuts bread, and chocolate chip bar cookies (Congo Squares) that I recall. She was over the moon happy when Pillsbury came out with their slice and bake cookies, though.
Mmm, those breads sound delicious. I’m a sucker for breads of almost any kind.
My little Grandma’s macaroni salad – also no written recipe but I was fortunate enough to be with her on several occasions when she made it – I now make for the family get togethers when my brother and sister request it – it is NOT your usual mac salad – it has hard boiled eggs and lots of cinnamon in it!
Interesting! That sounds like one I might like. I’m kicking myself for never asking my grandma to write down her recipe for me. These women were amazing, carrying around entire cookbooks in their heads!
Yes! I remember my grandmother making chicken and dumplings. She would roll out her dumplings from scratch.
Ooo. That sounds so good. Nothing more comforting than chicken and dumplings.
I was so fortunate that both of my grandmothers were great cooks. My Nannie would make the best homemade yeast rolls- I can still remember how they tasted fresh from the oven dripping with butter. She also used to pop popcorn for me when I would spend the night- it was super good because she would use lard to pop it in. My grandma would make chicken and dumplings from scratch that were amazing. She also made a pineapple cake with icing that was cooked on the stove.
What wonderful food memories, Patti! Homemade yeast rolls are the best! And now I”m craving them, and it’s only 9:00 a.m. Thanks a lot. Ha!
What a unique recipe, Karen!! I don’t think I’ve ever seen a persimmon before, let alone baked with one!! But with those spices, I’m sure the cookies would be delicious. Almost fall-like!
Yes, persimmons only show up in grocery stores in the fall. It’s been a few years since I’ve made these cookies. I need to give them another whirl once autumn comes around.
I was blessed to have both Grandmothers nearby for much of my growing up years, and they were both good cooks. My Mom’s mother made Rosettes every Christmas with the Rosette iron her mother brought with her from Sweden. My Dad’s parents lived on a dairy farm and she made good “down home cookin’ ” dishes, including the B.E.S.T. fried chicken in the world!
What a blessing to have such treasured memories of your grandmothers, Karin! My paternal grandmother made another of my favorite cookies. It was a simple shortbread, but every Christmas, that was the cookie I went hunting for at Grandmother’s house. 🙂
My grandmother baked the most delicious cookies. I am fortunate to have her recipes.
That truly is a blessing to have those recipes. Precious heirlooms!
Persimmon Cookies! I haven’t thought of them in years. My Mom never failed to make them when persimmons were in season. Her recipe was very similar to the one you’ve posted. No raisins though as no one liked them. She did put walnuts in for crunch since we had huge English Walnut trees on the property where I grew up. I never liked the cookies but one of my favorite persimmon recipes is Persimmon Pudding with Rum Sauce. Rarely do I see persimmons in Wyoming, my daughter sends them to me every fall from Texas.
How fun to share a persimmon memory with you, Carol! I enjoy both walnuts and raisins, so maybe I’ll need to try a mix in my next batch. 🙂
I learned to cook and bake from both my mom and my grandmother, dad’s mom, everything from classic Mexican food to American and some Italian foods as well. My mom was born and raised in Texas so she taught me some good Tex-Mex recipes too that she ate growing up. She loved Italian foods so she passed those along as well. My grandmother taught me all her Mexican recipes, from tamales for Christmas to caldos de rez and carne guisadas and her delicious homemade flour tortillas and corn tortillas. I am so grateful to still have them in my life, helping me teach my own kids like they taught me.
What a blessing to have those memories and treasured times together in the kitchen. And I love that you are passing down the recipes to the next generation!
My mom’s pot roast and noodles
Yum!
Wow these persimmon cookies sound and look delicious, Thank you for sharing the recipe. My mom used to make delicious red Enchiladas.
I love enchiladas! Those sound great, Alicia!
Mom and I used to bake cookies together. I have a sugar cookie recipe that Mom and my grandmother “made up” trying to get the same cookie from Mom’s early version easy bake oven! We also used to make chocolate covered peanut butter balls around Christmas, and we’d give them to her doctors, family and friends.
How fun to try to recreate an easy bake oven recipe. I remember those ovens!
My grandma taught me how to make peanut brittle.
Yum! I love peanut brittle.