i love Lucy's persimmon cake

Who doesn't love Lucy? Well today, I'm sharing Lucy’s persimmon cake is a recipe that I tasted many years ago, and have often thought about making, especially when autumn rolls around. It’s a sweet and rich cake, and I was so happy to come across the recipe recently in my vintage Celebrity Cookbook by Dinah Shore.  

Luckily, here in southern California, persimmons are just coming into season, and my neighbor has a very fertile tree and always is generous in sharing with us. This recipe originally comes from Lucy’s mother, Desiree and her Aunt Helen and was always a part of their Christmas tradition.  They usually made this cake for gift giving. I'll be trying this recipe this weekend. I hope it’s as good as I remember! 

  

Lucy’s Persimmon Cake

Ingredients

·       2 c. sugar

·       3 T. butter

·       2 c. persimmon pulp

·       1 c. raisins

·       4 c. sifted cake flour

·       grated rind of 1 orange

·       1/2 t. each cloves, allspice, nutmeg

·       1 t. baking soda

·       2 t. vanilla

·       2 c. chopped walnut

·       1 c. dates, finely chopped

·       1 c. milk

·       2 t. cinnamon

·       3 t. baking powder

Directions

In a large mixing bowl, cream sugar and butter.  Add persimmon pulp, nuts, raisin, dates and orange peel;  mix well.  Sift flour with baking soda, baking powder and spices.  Add flour mixture alternately with milk beginning and ending with flour.  Stir in vanilla.  Turn batter into 2 well-greased loaf pans and bake approx. 1 ½ hours at 300 degrees F.  

Turn out onto a wire rack to cool.  Garnish, if you’d like, with glazed fruits and nuts.  

Persimmons  - photo credit: Two Peas and their Pod.

Persimmon Cake - photo credit:  Jessie Monds

ciao! fabiana