The American persimmon is native to the eastern US from New England to Florida, growing wild across the south as far west as Kansas, Texas, and Oklahoma. Besides bearing delicious and edible fruit, the tree provides valuable timber. Being a member of the Ebony family the wood is quite hard. Wildlife, including opossums, raccoons, birds, deer and coyotes, relish the ripe fruits in the fall. In the spring the blossoms provide a good nectar source for bees. According to one source, the seeds may be roasted, ground and used in place of coffee. Persimmon fruit, probably due to the high tannin content, is reported to soothe digestion. Harvest the fruit in late fall/early winter after the first frost when the leaves have fallen. The fruit can be stored 2 months at a temperature just above freezing. In addition to uses in baked goods, jams and jellies, the fruit can be dried or made into leather.
Here's a good link with some in-depth information on the American persimmon.
Here's a small collection of persimmon recipes from some of my cookbooks. Happy Foraging!
Wild Persimmon Pudding
1/4 cup butter
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup persimmon pulp
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup light cream or evaporated milk
1 tsp vanilla
Grease a 9 x 9 x 2 inch baking pan and set it aside. Melt the butter in a saucepan and set it aside also. Sift the flour, baking powder, and cinnamon together into a large bowl. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Pour into the baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. The pudding will puff up while baking, then fall back as it cools. Cool the pudding in the pan on a rack. Serve cold, with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. Makes 9 to 12 servings. May be doubled.
Wild Persimmon Pudding (without egg)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup persimmon pulp
1 1/2 cups milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp melted margarine
1 cup dried currants
1/2 cup coarsely broken nutmeats (hickory if possible)
Grease a 7 x 11 x 1 1/2 inch cake pan with margarine. Have ready a larger, shallow pan filled with about 1 inch of hot water. Set both aside. Sift the flour, sugar, soda, salt, and spices together onto a sheet of waxed paper. In a large bowl, stir together the persimmon pulp, milk, vanilla, and margarine. Add the sifted ingredients and stir until well blended, then add the currants and nutmeats and stir again. Pour into the prepared pan, then place it into the pan of water. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and carefully take the cake pan out of the pan of water. Cool the pudding in the pan on a wire rack, then cut it into squares. Serve plain or with whipped cream. Makes 12 servings.
Wild Persimmon Bars
1 cup persimmon pulp
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 egg
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cooking oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup dried currants (or 1/2 cup raisins)
1/2 cup coarsely broken nutmeats (hickory if possible)
Grease a 10 x 15 x 1 inch jelly-roll pan with margarine and set it aside. In a medium sized bowl, stir the soda into the persimmon pulp. Set this aside for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, sift the flour and spices together onto a sheet of waxed paper. Put the egg, sugar, salt and oil into a large bowl and beat them with an electric mixer until blended. Add the persimmon pulp and beat well, then add the sifted dry ingredients and beat only until well mixed. Stir in the vanilla, currants, and nutmeats. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it out to the edges. Using a spatula dipped in water, lightly smooth the surface of the batter ot make it as even as possible. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and allow it to cool on a wire rack for 5 to 10 minutes, then frost the bars with glaze.
Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbsp lemon juice
Stir the sugar and juice together and spread this over the sheet of uncut persimmon bars. When cool, but into 1 1/2 x 2 inch bars. Makes 50 bars. These are better the next day, after they have had time to mellow.
(The above 3 recipes from Wild Seasons by Kay Young)
Persimmon Jam
Use very ripe persimmons, making sure the fruit is absolutely ripe, by which we mean extremely soft and barely held together by the skin, which should have become nearly transparent. For each 3 pounds of fruit you will need:
1 lb sugar
3/4 cup water
grated rind and juice of 1/2 lemon
Remove stems and crowns; remove seeds; leave skins on. Bring water and sugar to a boil; after a couple of minutes, add the persimmons and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring often. Then add the lemon, stir well, and boil until it has reached the right consistency. Pour into hot jars and seal when cool. (This must refer to paraffin sealing, which is no longer recommended. I would use ring banks and caps and water bath for 5 minutes. JB)
From Home Preserving Made Easy by Dorothy Parker and Vera Gewanter
Persimmon Jelly
3 1/2 to 4 pounds ripe persimmons
2 cups water
3 Tbsp lemon juice
1 package powdered fruit pectin
1/2 cup honey
Wash persimmons and remove blossom end. Place in a 6 to 8 quart stainless steel or enamel saucepan. Add water. Bring mixture to a boil. Mash persimmons. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat. Press pulp through strainer to remove pits. Measure 3 cups pulp. Stir in lemon juice and pectin. Brink mixture to a boil. Stir in honey all at once. Let mixture return to a full rolling boil that can't be stirred down. Boil for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Do a jelly test, and when firm enough, ladle into hot, scalded half-pint jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace, and seal. Process for 5 minutes in a boiling water bath.
From Stocking Up III by Carol Hupping
American Persimmon Pie
2 cups persimmon pulp
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 9-inch pie shell, uncooked
Mix persimmon pulp, egg and milk. Mix sugar, salt and cornstarch and add to first mixture. Pour filling into unbaked pie shell.
Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes. Then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake 50 to 60 minutes longer