Have I got a persimmon Fuyu!

My Fuyu persimmon finally ripened yesterday, after weeks of my anxiously attending to it. Meaning I would pick it up, give it a worried look and a little squeeze, then scowl and drop it back into the fruit bowl.

Aside from the fact that they require a lot of patience, persimmons are the perfect Wasp fruit.  One variety--called, naturally enough, the American Persimmon--is native to this country, so we feel all warm and patriotic when eating them.  (Never mind that the ones most commonly available in supermarkets at this time of year, Hachiya and Fuyu, are Asian varieties.) 

Persimmons are delicious when soft and ripe. I enjoy just scooping their little insides out and eating them raw. The taste is mellowly sweet and the consistency resembles custard more than fruit.  For some reason, others prefer a slightly fancier presentation, persimmon pudding.  Here's a website--called, naturally enough--Persimmon Pudding--with dozens of recipes.