At this time tomorrow I’ll be in Korea… for another wedding or two, first mine and then my brother’s. How lucky am I to have two weddings? Oh, three actually. You bet! Nah…. However, the traditional Korean wedding ceremony might be quite interesting, lots of bowing, throwing live chickens, lots of noise from SamulNori(Traditional music performance), lots of food and drinks, and above all, beautiful Korean traditional clothes, Hanbok. Everyone around is excited about experiencing a traditional wedding, which is long forgotten as almost all couples do a western wedding these days. So it’s going to be a memorable event for all …

…..especially for in-laws and Mr.O’s friends coming all the way to the far away land full of rumours and myths. “Do they have cheese? Do they have bread? Do they really eat rice for breakfast?” and many more. Anyway, we’re taking lots of bread and cheese with us, and even Simits for my nephews, who liked them so much when they came to Turkey last year.

As I was trying to empty out the fridge and pantry before we go, I saw a tray of persimmons going too ripe. So one evening when there wasn’t any dessert to eat after dinner, I quickly whipped up a persimmon pudding.

It’s a fuss-free and no-fail recipe, and is decadently delicious with caramelised bottom and the rich and warm scent of vanilla and cinnamon. It’s utterly irresistible and delectable, and I was going to post about this pudding but didn’t get around to making it again so I’ll give you the link of this recipe and you must try it if you haven’t. I’ll definitely make it again with the persimmons that I’d put away in the freezer when I get back and get small ramekins. There is another link at the end of the post, which I thought I’d use for the next time. So please check that out, too.

There were still two more persimmons AND bananas to be eaten. As I hate wasting food, I decided to tweak the usual banana bread recipe for persimmons and it worked. It was very moist, delicious and healthy since it’s made with buckwheat.

Yes, buckwheat again, sorry but I love its nutty taste so much that I even make fried rice with buckwheat instead of rice. It shows that I must be Korean because Koreans love buckwheat 🙂 But what’s up with the poppy seeds though? Well, I added them just because it happened to be Remembrance Day the day before.

I mixed the puree of two persimmons with one medium banana and yogurt before adding it into the dry ingredients of buckwheat flour, some whole wheat flour, crushed walnuts and poppy seeds, etc. I baked it in a long ribbed cake pan, not on purpose but because I didn’t have a proper sized loaf pan.

Whatever the shape, the result was delicious nonetheless. I’ve baked Banana Buckwheat Bread before and it was adjusted slightly because of yogurt. Of course, you can omit a banana and make a pure persimmon bread. It was just to give an idea for people who ever wonder what to do with leftover persimmons and bananas, which seem abundant right now. Korea will be full of persimmons as well and I’ll be eating a lot of them for sure. Please stay warm till I come back with lots of goodies and funny stories.

Persimmon Banana Buckwheat Bread

Ingredients (1 loaf – 9 inch)

2 very ripe persimmons, pureed
1 ripe banana, peeled and mashed
1 1/2 cups buckwheat flour
1/2 cups wholewheat flour
2 large eggs
1/3 cup coconut oil or hazelnut oil
1/2 cup yogurt
1/3 cup brown or white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 tsp mix of cinnamon, nutmeg or spices of your choice
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
2 Tbsp poppy seeds (optional)

Steps:

1. Preheat the oven to 350’F(175’C) and butter a 9-inch loaf pan. Make sure all ingredients are at room temperature. In a stand mixer using the whisk attachment, mix the banana and persimmons until blended. Add and mix in the eggs, melted butter, sugar, vanilla extract on medium speed. Add flour, baking soda, salt and blend. Do not over mix. Add the walnuts. Mix on high for 3 seconds. Pour batter into the loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour or until the cake tester comes out clean. Let it cool and rest.

1. Preheat the oven to 350’F(175’C) and butter a 9-inch loaf pan.
2. In a small bowl, mix the persimmon puree, mashed banana and yogurt.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the oil, eggs, vanilla and sugar vigorously till well-combined and frothy.
3. Sift in the flour, baking soda and spices, and add the mashed bananas and mix all together gently until just combined.
4. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 50 mins. Transfer to a rack to cool.

Grandma’s Persimmon Pudding (A sweet hallelujah)