Merry Christmas beautiful!
I hope the holidays are treating you well and you’re surrounded by many loving friends and family members.
I am sharing this recipe from my room in Siem Reap, Cambodia. (See the travels and reason ‘why’ here) – Tomorrow I’ll take a bus to Phnom Penh and join a local NGO called “New Hope” which works with orphanages battling HIV/AIDS.
I hadn’t originally intended to be in Cambodia for Christmas, but am happy to be able to contribute to other peoples’ lives during the holidays. Personally, I feel very connected with my friends and family from afar so, so feel fine about not being home for the holidays… but also know many people find being alone during this time of the year quite tough.
If this is your or someone you know, take heart and either reach out to participate in a Christmas with a friend, or offer space and invite someone else to celebrate with you. The holidays are, after all, about each other and the recognizing the gift of life.
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Because I am without a kitchen at the moment (and am not sure when I’ll be back in one in the near future), I’m sharing this inspiring recipe from a new favorite blog With an Open Mind.
Winter offers some beautiful gifts, persimmons are just one of those. Yet most people don’t know what to do when they find a batch for a reasonable price (or just don’t know how to use them in general), therefore I think this recipe will be perfect. for helping you enjoy their bliss.
**Tip** Let your persimmons ripen until they’re super mushy and soft (but obviously not over-ripe and close to molding). This is when the starches convert to sugar (like in bananas when they’re spotted), and they’ll be much more sweet and easier to digest.
- 1/4 cup persimmon puree
- 4 soft dates
- 1 1/2 cups oats
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 T honey
- 2 T almond flour
- 2 T coconut flakes
- First process the oats into oat flour. It’s really simple: just place them in your food processor and mix on medium until they reach a pretty fine consistency. Place in a bowl.
- To make the persimmon puree, place 3/4 of a ripe persimmon in a food processor and mix until liquid. Add the pitted dates and keep mixing until the consistency is light and fluffy (don’t worry if there are still a few tiny pieces of date).
- Take a second bowl in which you combine the persimmon date fluff (also delicious as a spread), cinnamon and honey. Mix well. Then add the oat flour, start mixing with a spoon and later use your fingers to make a firm dough.
- Place your almond flour and coconut flakes in two separate small bowls. Take teaspoons of dough and form into walnut-sized balls. Roll them in either almond or coconut. The almond flour sticks pretty good. My trick for the coconut flakes is to use 2-3 drops of water while forming the ball, knead it well first and than roll in coconut, pressing the flakes slightly into the surface of the ball.
NOTES
- You can use the remaining 1/4 persimmon by cutting it up in tiny pieces and adding it to the dough before forming your snow balls. It will make them a bit more juicy and add some extra flavor.
Roll these treats in shredded coconut for the ‘dusting effect’ of snow.
I’m sure your family and friends will love them, and as you can see, they’re super simple to make.
Enjoy friends, I won’t be in touch much in the next week and a half, but look forward to the New Year and sharing more gifts from Bloom for Life soon after.
xo
