Winter Fruit

I love fruit; from watermelon to crenshaw melon to bing cherries, I can't wait for the summer so that I can enjoy some sweet, juicy fruit. Besides the weather, what I hate most about winters in Seattle is the fact that it is really hard to find good fruit. That is unless you enjoy unripened, hardened, bland fruit. However the past few winters I have rediscovered some great winter fruit that I think any fruit lover would also enjoy.

This time of year, Asian pears or nashi as they are known in Japan are really, really good. Basically it's a super juicy, sweet hybrid apple pear. It's between the hardness of an apple and softness of a pear, with the sweetness of the best pear you can think of. Basically it's the best of both worlds and the best time to get them is in the fall/winter.

My other favorite winter fruit is the persimmon, which is another great winter fruit that is not as common as the Asian pear. Sometimes it's described as a cinnamon persimmon or apple persimmon. The meat of the fruit is usually a bright orange. Usually the riper the sweeter the fruit is. This fruit is even sweeter than the Asian pear.

Asian pear (nashi) and persimmon (kaki)

I like to peel the skin off and then cut up the fruit before eating it. You can eat Asian pears without skinning them first., but sometimes the skin can be a little bitter.

Most people have eaten an Asian pear, but I bet not everyone has tried a persimmon. So next time you're in the mood for some fruit and are tired of grapes or apples, try something new and experiment with the persimmon and I'm sure you'll become a fan.

- Kyle