Have you started seeing these beautiful orange fruits appear in the grocery store yet? Available from around October through February, persimmons are a delicious fall and winter treat that you should definitely snap up when you see them! Persimmons can be eaten many different ways, but my favorite way is baked up into this Persimmon Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting.

This cake is tender and moist, and a little unusual because it uses two kinds of persimmons, fuyu and hachiya. Usually, only the softer, more jelly-like flesh of the hachiya is used in baking. But, I like to add chunks of the firmer fuyu persimmon to add some texture to the soft cake.

And this cinnamon cream cheese frosting really takes this persimmon cake to new heights! The creaminess and slight savory flavor of the cream cheese adds such a nice complement to the sweet fruity flavors in the cake. But honestly, it’s cinnamon cream cheese frosting…it would taste amazing on anything. If it was acceptable, I would put this on toast, it’s that good!

Persimmon Cake on Plates with persimmon and pan in the background

Difference Between Fuyu and Hachiya Persimmons and Where to Find Them

As I mentioned, there are two commonly available types of persimmons, fuyu and hachiya. Fuyu persimmons remind me a little bit of a tomato – a bit round and flattened in shape. The hachiya persimmon is larger and has a more elongated teardrop shape.

In my experience, I’ve had an easier time finding the hachiya persimmon in a regular grocery store (when it’s in season of course!). The fuyu is a little bit more rare, at least where I live. I have been able to find it at my local Costco and in Asian grocery stores.

If you can’t find the fuyu persimmon, you can still make this recipe without it, or get creative and try some other add ins. Apple chunks would be delicious, or how about chopped nuts? Or…even white chocolate chips? Now we’re talking.

How to Tell When a Persimmon is Ripe

There is a huge difference between the fuyu and hachiya in terms of ripeness. The fuyu is delicious eaten raw when still firm or with a slight amount of give. Any softer than that and it’s heading towards being a little bit overripe. However, even if overripe, the fuyu will still taste delicious when baked into this persimmon cake!

The hachiya, on the other hand, is a whole different animal. This persimmon must be completely soft before you can eat it. I’m talking so squishy it feels like a water balloon filled with jelly when you poke it! It should offer no resistance when you cut into it, and the flesh inside should look almost translucent.

If you try to eat it before then, the fruit is so astringent it will feel like all the moisture on your tongue has been sucked out. Not too pleasant. Now, since there is a lot of sugar in this cake and the hachiya pulp is blended up with the other ingredients, you may be able to get away with hachiyas that are not 100% perfectly ripe, but I still highly recommend waiting until the persimmons are squishy as I described for the best result.

If your hachiya persimmons aren’t ripe yet, just let them hang out on the counter for a couple days. Or, to speed things up, use the old banana in a paper bag trick. I like to let the hachiyas rest upside down on their stem end to protect the super soft flesh.

How to Make Hachiya Pulp for Persimmon Cake

This cake calls for 1 1/2 cups hachiya persimmon pulp, which for me, translated to about 2 large hachiya persimmons. You may need more or less depending on the size of your persimmons. Some persimmon cake recipes call for scooping out the persimmon flesh and blending it in a food processor, but I am pretty lazy so I like to take a short cut.

This is how I like to prepare the pulp: Cut the hachiya persimmon in half across the middle. Then, using a large spoon, scoop out the pulp onto a cutting board. Give it a chop to break it up into small chunks. That’s it! Since the hachiyas should be super ripe anyways, the flesh should break apart easily into small pulpy pieces when chopped. Plus, I actually prefer having the added chunky texture versus a perfectly smooth puree.

Persimmon Cake on orange plate with persimmon in the background

If you’ve tried this recipe for Persimmon Cake, please let me know what you thought about it in the comments down below, I would love to hear from you! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to see more delicious recipes from Nibble and Dine!

Need some more delicious baked goods? Here are some of my favorites!

Thumbprint Cookies – an updated recipe from an old family cookbook
Mango and White Chocolate Scones – these are ready in about 30 minutes!
Brown Butter Apple Muffins – these take a little bit of extra work but they are so worth it!

Persimmon Cake

Author: Kate
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Yield: 12 servings 1x
Category: dessert
Method: bake
Cuisine: American

Description

This tender and moist cake uses two kinds of persimmons and is topped with cinnamon cream cheese frosting.

Scale

Ingredients

Persimmon Cake:

3 large eggs
1 c. granulated sugar
1 c. packed dark brown sugar
1 c. vegetable or canola oil
2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. hachiya persimmon pulp (from about 2 large hachiya persimmons, see note 1)
3 c. flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 c. peeled and chopped fuyu persimmons (about 3 fuyu persimmons)

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting:

4 oz. cream cheese, softened
2 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
2 c. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. milk

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan, set aside.

3. Add the eggs, granulated sugar, brown sugar, oil, vanilla and hachiya persimmon pulp into a large bowl. Whisk to combine.

4. In a separate medium bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Whisk or stir with a fork to combine.

5. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and whisk just until evenly combined. Stir in the chopped fuyu persimmon.

6. Bake in the greased pan for 45 – 50 minutes, or until the top of the cake is deep brown and springs back in the middle when gently pressed.

7. To make the cinnamon cream cheese frosting: Add the butter and cream cheese into a medium bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer. Using hand beaters or the stand mixer, beat until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar, cinnamon and milk in small amounts, beating in between each addition, until the frosting is smooth and creamy.

8. Once the cake is completely cooled, frost the top with the cinnamon cream cheese frosting. Store the cake in the fridge, covered, for up to 4 days (see note 2).

Notes

To make hachiya persimmon pulp, cut each ripe hachiya persimmon in half across the middle. Using a large spoon, scoop out the persimmon flesh onto a cutting board and chop up until pulpy.
You can freeze the unfrosted cake to serve later. To freeze the cake, allow the cake to cool completely, then wrap in a double layer of plastic wrap. Freeze for up to 3 months. After cake is defrosted completely, frost as directed in recipe. (I recommend making the frosting fresh!)

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