Fall harvest: Chestnuts and Persimmons

Seems like everytime I go to visit my parents in Pennsylvania, I end up harvesting whatever happens to be ripe on their trees or vines. This time it was chestnuts and persimmon.

Chestnuts are dangerous because they fall off the tree encased in a spiky death shell. You have to carefully pry them open with a stick or the toes of your shoes. I like to eat them roasted. My mom said "Don't forget to cut a slice before you roast it or KABOOM." The pugs liked eating them raw, but that made them a bit gassy.

Persimmons were ready to be picked too. The tree was supposed to be an oriental persimmon (Fuyu) but apparently rabbits chewed away at the young tree leaving only the graft which was an American persimmon (Hachiya). So instead of big lucsious persimmons, we have these smaller versions. The Fuyu persimmons sound like amazing sweet treats while the Hachiya can be astringent if eaten at the wrong time.

They seem like a tricky fruit. If it is a Fuyu you can't go wrong. Bite into an unripe Hachiya and your mouth will pucker up and go numb. Luckily I can put the unripe ones into a paper bag with a banana and they will ripen.

I picked a lot of persimmons and am planning to dehydrate some and the others are going into a jar with honey. My mom says in Korea persimmons soaked in honey were considered to be a food to make your life longer. I can't find anything online about this but how can anything in honey be bad?

Chestnuts

My parents have a few Chinese chestnut trees in their yard and the spikey round balls, chestnut burrs, are everywhere. I put on a hard hat (didn't want them falling on my bare head - those things are sharp!) and gathered them up and brought a few home.

Did you know the American chestnut tree was nearly wiped out by a blight fungus in the 1800's? At one time one in four hardwood trees in the US was an American Chestnut but the introduction of the Japanese Chestnut tree brought the blight. There is a new generation of American Chestnut tree that the American Chestnut Foundation is hoping will restore them to our environment.

Back home, I was all about eating the chestnuts. First I boiled them for about half and hour but they seemed to miss that roasted flavor so I cut an X in each one and roasted them on the grill. They seem a little dry but my friend Diedra suggested I drizzle honey over them!

Swiss Chestnuts

Chestnuts appeared to be very popular in Switzerland. I first noticed them for sale from vendors on the streets. They roast them right there and you buy them in a little paper sack.

Every street seemed to have a roasted chestnut stand. I got a small bag and they tasted pretty much like they do when my mom roasts them. Aaron was desperate for a beverage after eating two. (dry)

I even found some lying on the ground in Thun.

This flower arrangement in the Oberhofen Castle included chestnuts which made me laugh. My parents have a few chestnut trees and those burs are deadly (not literally). So sharp and if you step on one... OW!