Persimmon Tart

“Life is a lot better with chocolate”

Happy New Year! Sorry to have been a bit neglectful of the blog the last month. Here is a quick and easy recipe a lot of people have been asking for. Persimmons are good for your eyes, have a lot of Vitamin-C, and may also have heart healthy benefits – so eat up, in a sweet way! 🙂

The Tart

1 cup butter

2 cups flour

4 tbsp sugar

pinch of salt

2 eggs, separated

a bit less than 1/4 cup water

1 tsp vanilla

Beat butter in stand mixer until smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt. Beat together two egg yolks with water. Add dry ingredients to butter in parts, beating in between additions. Add the eggs to the mixture and then the vanilla. When dough clumps together, remove from stand mixer and wrap well with plastic wrap. Place in fridge overnight. Save egg whites in refrigerator to brush tarts with later while baking.

Remove dough from refrigerator and place in pre-buttered rectangular tart pan (with removable bottom). Pre-heat oven to 375F. Prick the tart with a fork and place in the freezer for about 10 minutes. Remove from freezer and cover the tart pan with parchment paper and fill middle with dried beans or rice (or pie weights if you have those) so that the dough does not rise while baking. Bake for 15-20 minutes this way. Then remove from oven, remove beans/rice/weights/parchment paper and cover with egg white wash. Return to oven for a few minutes until golden-brown.  Let the tart cool to room temperature before removing from tart pan.

Ricotta Cream and Persimmons

1.5 cups ricotta cheese

2 tbsp. sugar

3 Fuyu persimmons (hard, not fully ripened)

1 bag of dark chocolate candy melts

handful of roasted pistachios

Whisk together the ricotta and sugar, and then spread evenly in the cooled tart. Peel and slice the persimmons into thin round slices. Melt the chocolate in 10 second intervals in the microwave until fully melted. If the chocolate is not smooth enough for dipping, you can add 1-2 tbsp. heavy cream and mix in well. Meanwhile, place the shelled pistachios in a baggie and use a kitchen mallet to quickly crumble them. Dip persimmon slices halfway into the chocolate, then sprinkle the pistachios over the chocolate half. Place the persimmons in the refrigerator for 30 mins-1hour to let the chocolate harden. Next, place the persimmons on the ricotta and place the tart in the refrigerator for another 2-4 hours to set.

See? Quick, no-fuss, semi-healthy dessert 😉 Enjoy!