Persimmon and Ginger Tartlets

Believe it or not, persimmons are actually a winter fruit. They offer a deliciously sweet flavor in the dead of winter. These tartlets are the perfect little bite-sized pick-me-up on a cold, winter day - the spice of the ginger mixed with the sweetness of the persimmon is sure to please! Oh, and not to mention the richness of the cream cheese crust!

What You'll Need:

FOR THE CRUST

3 oz. cream cheese

4 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons powdered sugar

¼ teaspoon fine sea salt

1 cup flour

24 paper cup cake cups

FOR THE FILLING

6 ripe persimmons

¼ cup dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger

2 tablespoons corn starch

¼ cup warm water

½ teaspoon fine sea salt

1. Let's start with the dough. Using the paddle attachment on a stand mixer, combine the cream cheese and butter. If you do not have a stand mixer, make sure the cream cheese and butter are at room temperature and you can mix them by hand with a wooden spoon.
2. Combine the flour, sea salt and powdered sugar in a small bowl and slowly add to the cheese mixture. Mix until the dough is nice and thick.
3. Take the dough out of the bowl and turn out onto a generously floured work surface. Form the dough into a ball and then pat it flat into a disk. Cut the disk in half. Next, cut each half in half (you now should have 4 equal pieces). Next take each ¼ and cut it into thirds (now you have 12 equal pieces). Finally, roll each piece into a ball and cut each one in half. (now you have 24 equal pieces). Phew!
4. Now comes the time to form each crust. Form each of your 24 pieces into a ball and push each one flat into a disk using your finger tips until they are about 4" in diameter. They don't have to be perfect circles - think rustic. Next, place each disk into a paper cup, gently pushing the dough into the form of the cup. Place each cup into a muffin tray so they hold their shape.
5. Place the muffin tray in the freezer for 15 minutes. While you're waiting, preheat the oven to 400. When the crusts are done freezing, take them directly from the freezer to the preheated oven and bake for about 6 to 8 minutes until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool completely.
6. Let's prepare the filling while the crusts cool. First things first, peel your persimmons. There are a number of ways to do this but I found the best way is to cut off the top then use my fingers to separate the pulp from the skin. This is a messy job, but someone's gotta do it.
7. Once you have the pulp separated, "chop" the pulp into small pieces. The reason why I put chop in quotations is because these babies are pretty juicy so its more of a smoosh than a chop. Place the pulp in a bowl and add the brown sugar and ginger.
8. In a tiny bowl, combine the water and corn starch until the starch is thoroughly dissolved. Add the starch mixture to the pulp and mix well with a wooden spoon.
9. Time to fill the tartlets. Using a tablespoon, fill each tartlet until the filling comes just to the top of each crust. Place back in the oven for about 17 minutes until the crusts are golden brown and fragrant and the filling is solid.
10. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 10 minutes. Remove the paper cups and serve (If you'd like, you can also leave the paper cups on the tartlets and cut away the excess).

Yield: 24 tartlets