Ingredients

Cookies:

• 1 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup (4 oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup very ripe Hachiya persimmon puree*
• 2 3/4 cups flour
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp cloves
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Glaze:

• 1 1/4 cups confectioner's sugar
• 2 Tbsp milk
• 1 Tbsp persimmon puree
• 1 tsp grated orange peel

*Cut off the top of a very ripe hachiya persimmon (should be completely soft to the touch) and use a spoon to scoop out the pulp. Discard any seeds that might be there. Each persimmon should yield anywhere from 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of pulp.

Method

1 Cream butter, brown sugar, vanilla and eggs in a large bowl. Add persimmon puree, stirring until blended.

2 Stir together dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients to persimmon mixture a third at a time, stirring just until flour is incorporated. Stir in nuts.

3 Lay out plastic wrap on a large smooth surface. Place the cookie dough on the plastic wrap and form into a long cylindrical log, wrapping the dough completely with the plastic wrap. Place in freezer. Chill at least a couple of hours, until frozen or almost frozen.

4 Preheat oven to 375°F. When dough is fairly solid, unwrap from plastic wrap and slice with a sharp knife, 1/4" thick rounds. Lay out cookie dough rounds on stick-free cookie sheets, leaving at least an inch between the cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until cookies spring back when lightly touched in center. Let cool on baking racks before frosting.

5 When cookies have cooled, lay out over a sheet of wax paper. Sift confectioner's sugar and then whisk with 2 Tbsp of milk until smooth. Add 1 Tbsp of persimmon puree and 1 tsp of grated orange peel and mix until smooth. Dip spoon into glaze mixture and dribble over cookies. Let harden and serve.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies.