My father loved enjoying product at the peak of the season and he had a particular fondness for persimmons.  Most of the local persimmon trees are Hachiya persimmons, the ones that are wide at the stem end, almost bell shaped.  Every year once they arrived in the market, Dad would buy about 6 of them and leave them on the counter to ripen.  Once they were so soft that they had the texture of an overripe tomato then Dad would eat them.  He’d make a small X on the bottom of the fruit with a sharp knife and carefully pull the peel back and then eat the fruit with a spoon.  Don’t rush the ripening and eat one before it’s completely soft.  You will regret it.  An unripened persimmon has a horrible acerbic after taste that feels like sand in your mouth.

In honor of Dad I always eat several persimmons this year while they are in season.  But I also like to use the ripened fruit instead of jam.  I love to top toasted multi-grain bread with a spread of goat cheese and a generous topping of ripe persimmon.

There is also the Fuyu persimmon, this is what is more commonly found in the market and can be eaten while still crunchy.  This is the persimmon you can use in salads or tarts.  This is also the persimmon used in this recipe.

I ran across the recipe for Whole Wheat Persimmon Ricotta Scones last year around Christmas time and was immediately obsessed!  Of course that’s not saying much since all food obsesses me, but this in particular.  I have a weakness for scones, and ricotta, and add persimmons and it’s a trifecta!

Unfortunately I discovered this recipe just as persimmon season ended.  Not wanting to believe that I went to about 6 different markets and several farmers markets and even started haunting the folks who had persimmon trees, but no such luck!  This recipe imprinted on me and as soon as persimmons were in season I had to try it.

It’s fabulous.  These are not a traditional crunchy scone, the ricotta makes them softer, the touch of whole wheat adds a nice nuttiness, and the spicing is perfect.  I added some toasted hazelnuts to the recipe, because I can’t make anything without messing with it!

The recipe calls for serving it slathered with additional ricotta and honey.  I had mine with ricotta and some sweet brilliant orange Hachiya persimmon.  Unlike most scones, these can be eaten the next day since the ricotta keeps them moist, but warm them slightly first since that makes them fragrant.

If you miss persimmon season and don’t want to wait a year, you can make these with pears or apples, or come early summer, apricots.