Veronica's Persimmon Salad

I got this amazing savory fruit salad recipe from my friend, Veronica.  Her salads are amazing and if you are ever lucky enough to be invited to her house for lunch, you will find yourself begging for the recipes.  She will put out 3 or 4 salads, some bread, maybe some wine and it becomes a meal more elegant than you would receive in most restaurants.  The funny thing about this particular salad is that I never actually sampled it at her house.  She sent me the recipe just for fun and I made it for a Friends of Westwood Library Board meeting (insert plug for the Facebook fan page here) without bothering to test it first.  And it was great.  So great that I was secretly very happy that there was one serving left after the meeting for me to scarf down at home. 

This is a beautiful late fall salad that makes great use of Southern California foods.  AND it is low fat...one tablespoon of walnut oil...that's it!  One last tip.  Instead of purchasing already seeded pomegranate seeds, buy a whole one (99 cents at Trader Joes), cut off a bit and submerge it in a bowl of water.  Break it apart and the non seedy parts will rise to the top.  Your seeds will be a much brighter color and it is a lot less expensive to use the whole thing.

2 lbs Fuyu persimmons (these are the flat, hard ones)
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 t ground cumin
1/2 serrano chili, stems and ribs removed, minced
salt
1/4 c pomegranate seeds
3 T toasted walnuts (I totally forgot this step and it was still fantastic.)
2 T chopped cilantro
1 T walnut oil

Slice off the top of the persimmons, then cut in half lengthwise and then chop into 10-12 wedges per persimmon. 

In a small, lidded jar, combine lime juice, cumin, chili and walnut oil along with a dash of salt.  Close it up and shake it furiously to emulsify. 

Combine persimmons and dressing, then toss with walnuts, pomegranate seeds and cilantro.

Persimmon and Pomegranate Salad w/Arugula and Hazelnuts

This fall salad is adapted from Suzanne Goin's "Sunday Suppers at Luques." It is especially good as the salad at Thanksgiving dinner.

2/3 c hazelnuts, toasted
1 T plus 1 t hazelnut oil (I use walnut, but in a pinch, olive will do it.)
1 T finely diced shallot
3 T pomegranate juice
1/3 c pomegranate seeds (just buy the darn thing from the market, split it open and pop out the seeds while submerging it in a bowl of water...the seeds are much, much fresher and juicer than any pre sorted seeds you buy at TJs or any other market.)
1 T sherry vinegar
2 t rice vinegar
3 T olive oil
2 small fuyu (the flat ones) persimmons
1/2 lemon
1/2 pound of arugula

Chop the hazelnuts after toasting and toss them with the hazelnut/walnut/olive oil and a generous pinch of salt.

Place the diced shallot, pom juice, both vinegars and 1/2 t salt in a bowl and let sit 5 min. Whisk in the olive oil and pepper (I hate to whisk, so I put it in a bowl with a lid and shake shake shake it like a polaroid picture until blended.)

In a large salad bowl, toss the persimmons and pom seeds with the dressing (not all of it...use your judgment) and that lemon juice you squeezed out of the 1/2 lemon. Gently toss in the arugula and taste for seasoning. Scatter the nuts atop and beam with pride at the beautiful salad you just made.