Luscious persimmons
perch, golden, on a platter,
tempting my taste buds
Our studio assistant, Willow, has been telling me about her grandfather, who loves to grow things. Aside from his five acre garden, she described his orchard full of fruit trees, among them a grove of over 60 Fuyu persimmon trees. As I opened the brown paper bag she brought to the studio this week, I was delighted to find it full of plump, squat golden orbs, glossy and firm to the touch, with lovely star-shaped leaves sitting atop their rounded form. I have had the more common Hachiyas persimmon found here in northeast Texas many times, the one that must remain on the tree until the first good freeze has rendered its flesh soft and creamy, ready to be squeezed orange and glowing, from its waxy skin onto warm toast, like jam. But this variety, new to me, was to be eaten firm and fresh, like an apple or a pear. The moment I cut into the first of the Fuyus, I inhaled an amazing sweet and luscious aroma, tempting me to pop the first slice into my mouth and bite down, releasing the most delicious flavor, with a texture much like an Oriental pear, a little granular, yet still creamy. I gobbled up the first one, and enjoyed every mouthful. What to do with the others? Googling recipes, it was clear to me that I did not want to cook this perfect fruit down for a pie or a cake or a "fool". This fruit demanded to be eaten fresh. This "Autumn Salad" seemed the perfect choice, to be laid out onto one of my platters. Yes, and perfectly delicious it was!
(If you are interested in purchasing the multi-colored oval platter pictured above, please click here.)
Autumn Salad
Fresh spinach leaves, or a mixture of spinach and arugula
Bosc or Asian pears
Fuyu persimmons
Pomegranate arils
Bleu cheese
Balsamic glaze
Freshly ground pepper
(If you are interested in purchasing the rectangular plate below, please click here.)
What better thing to serve with this crisp and sweet salad than a simple bowl of homemade chicken soup?
Chicken noodle soup.
Its aroma fills the house.
My mind can taste it.
Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
Take an organic free range chicken and put it in an extra large pot on the stove, covered with water, along with a tablespoon or two of dry mustard, about the same amount of tumeric, dried or fresh marjoram and thyme, a few bay leaves, a good handful of fresh parsley, and salt and pepper. Throw in a peeled and coarsely chopped onion, a clove or two of garlic, several large carrots, peeled and coarsely chopped, the large and small ends and leaves of celery, coarsely chopped (reserving the center parts of the stems for slicing into nice crescents for the finished soup), and a few chunks of bell pepper (again reserving the "pretty" slices for the finished soup). Bring this chicken and stock to a boil, turn down to simmer and allow the chicken to cook fully.
While this is happening, melt half a stick of butter, or heat some olive oil in a large pot.
Saute:
two large onions, peeled and chopped into dice
the reserved celery, cut into crescents (I used a whole head, divided between the stock and the soup)
When the onion is translucent, add:
a red, yellow and green bell pepper, sliced and cut into dice
a bunch of green onions, cleaned and chopped
Meanwhile, after the chicken is cooked, and the broth cooled enough to handle, debone the chicken, add the chunky skinned and deboned chicken to the pot of sauteed vegetables.
Skim the fat from the top of the chicken stock, and strain the flavorful stock into the pot of chicken and veggies.
Add quite a few carrots, peeled and sliced into coins (I used two pounds of carrots, total, for the stock and for the finished soup) and a package of wide egg noodles to the broth and just bring to a boil.
Add a fresh handful of parsley and a package of frozen green peas to the soup.
The noodles will be cooked just tender, as will the peas and carrots.
Now it's ready to eat!