At this time of year there is an abundance of shiny orange fruit adorning the trees lining the avenues of Beijing. Coming from a country where this is an unfamiliar autumn sight, it took me some time last year to identify these as persimmon (shi zi) or Sharon fruit, but I'm glad I did.

Persimmon species can be divided into astringent and non-astringent varieties. The non-astringent (Fuyu, Jiro and Hanagosho varieties) can be eaten when firm and crisp like an apple. The astringent types (Korean and Hachiya) have a very high tannic acid content, which makes them very bitter and unpalatable when firm. If they are allowed to ripen fully, this astringency disappears and they develop a sweet taste and soft, gloopy texture. Nutritionally speaking, persimmon sit somewhere between apples and bananas for calorie content - 1 large persimmon (170g) contains around 110 kcal. They are high in vitamin C and predictably, beta carotene, as indicated by their glowing orange color. They also contain good amounts of fiber and are high in potassium.

The Chinese approach to persimmon is fairly straightforward. They are either eaten fresh, or dried. During the winter, you often see boxes of almost spoilt-looking fruit sitting outside the shops. In fact these are being exposed to frost as part of the drying and tannic acid breakdown process. The Japanese employ a traditional drying method to produce Hoshi Goki, a much revered type of dried persimmon. The technique involves air-drying and careful hand massaging over a period of 3-5 weeks until the sugar within the fruit rises to the surface to produce a sugar dusting.

Persimmons are also native to North America, and from my internet trawl I discovered a huge number of American recipe ideas. Persimmon bread, persimmon pie, persimmon pudding.it went on. Anyway, I attempted to make some persimmon jam a few weeks back - this didn't go too well due to a lack of pectin and jam-making expertise on my part. I did, however, end up with 5 jars of rather tasty persimmon compote (as I decided to name it), which goes nicely on top of my morning porridge or mixed with natural yoghurt. To make this concoction I skinned around 4 kilos of fruit and simmered the pulp with a cup of sugar, the juice and zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon and around 2 tablespoons of minced fresh ginger for about 30 minutes. I then put this into sterilized jars and am currently storing them in the fridge.

This weekend I decided to put one of the jars to further use by making persimmon cookies. I sifted 2 cups of plain flour and 1 teaspoon baking soda with a few pinches of cinnamon, ground nutmeg and mixed spice. I then creamed around half a cup of butter with a cup of sugar until it was fluffy, then beat in an egg and a cup of the persimmon compote (or you could use pureed persimmon). I folded in the flour and a cup of oats, and dropped the mixture by the teaspoon onto a greased baking sheet. These went in the oven for around 15-20 minutes at 180 degrees C.

For now I'm going to give the household a break from the persimmon onslaught, but my next plan is persimmon chutney, and maybe a few chopped dried persimmon in the Christmas cake mix.

This nutrition-related column is written by Nina Lenton, a qualified dietitian living in Beijing and working at Bayley and Jackson Medical Center. Contact her at nina.lenton@ikang.com

(China Daily 11/07/2007 page14)