Delightful orange globes.

It's so good to be back in California.  Of course I love being among family and being back among my fellow liberals but what I really love about being back in California is this is where most of our fresh produce are grown!!  So all of the things that I generally don't eat because they are grown across the continent from where we live (my guilty conscience won't let me) I finally get to eat!  Avocado?  Of course!  Grapes?  You betcha!  Persimmons?  Absolutely!

When I lived in Santa Monica, I lived a few blocks from the bi-weekly Santa Monica Farmer's Market.  I totally took it for granted and now, looking back, I realize how good I had it with access to the freshest fruits and vegetables year round.  And I always looked forward to the holiday months but not for Thanksgiving and Christmas.  I was obsessed with persimmons.  Oh man.  Just typing the word makes me salivate.  As we were driving around Napa yesterday I saw what I thought was an orange tree but my step-mom corrected me saying it was a persimmon tree.  I almost jumped out of the car!  In my absence from California, I'd totally forgotten all about my favorite seasonal fruit.  So I had my step-mom take me to Whole Foods straight away so I could get TWO POUNDS worth of California-grown fuyu persimmons.

I was not disappointed.  They are as good as I remember.  Luckily no one else in my dad's house really likes them so all two pounds of the delicious, apple-like fruit are mine.

I am so excited.

Have you ever had a fuyu persimmon?  If you live where they have to be shipped in from across the country, don't go buy any.  You'll be disappointed.  But if you're ever in California in November or December, do yourself a favor and get a few.  But get the fuyu, not the hachiya, which have to be eaten soft.  The fuyu are eaten hard, like an apple.  And they are so good.  Trust me.