Persimmon, Caper, and Cherry Tomato Bruschetta

Once upon a time, I saw a cooking show about using very few ingredients and there was a recipe for couscous (the treat so nice they named it twice) that had kalamata olives and dates.  I fell in love with the savory/salty/briney/sweet combo.  Yesterday I was at Costco buying a massive bucket of dates and thought of that recipe, so it was in my mind.  I also have recently fallen in love with persimmons, inspired largely by Fully Raw Kristina on Instagram and Facebook.

Dinner was big last night because my mother-in-law was visiting from out of state after being on a business trip and I figured a great home cooked meal would be good.

I knew I was making spaghetti with dill and lemon pesto in an avocado base because I came up with that off the top of my head and had to make it into reality.

I love dill so much, and I found a big bunch of organic dill at the store the other day and had to use it before going bad.  I added an avocado, some garlic, and lemon zest and juice plus olive oil to the blender with the dill and made a nice sauce to toss with my spaghetti.

I used a little of the dill with a maple mustard dressing on kale salad too.  Maple mustard is like honey mustard.  I mix mustard, maple syrup, a little oil, salt and pepper and we all love it.  It's our favorite dressing.

I sliced the last half of banana squash from Thanksgiving and roasted it with salt and pepper.  It's sweet and creamy.  It's definitely my new favorite squash.

Even without marinara, I felt like we needed a tomato element, so I decided on bruschetta.  I was chopping up the cherry tomatoes and garlic when I thought of that couscous recipe again like I had earlier that day.  The persimmon I had would be perfect to sweeten the mix, and capers would give it the briney element I was looking for.

When my husband asked where I got the idea, I said, "I didn't follow a recipe or anything," and he said, "I didn't think you did!  It's great, but I just can't imagine anyone who writes recipes writing out a recipe that calls for persimmons and capers.  

Well, here it is:

About 1 cup cherry tomatoes, chopped up (this is rustic, no need to perfectly dice)

1 persimmon chopped to about the same size as the pieces of tomato

3 or more cloves of garlic

2 or more Tbsp of capers

2 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil, that EVOO for you Rachel Ray fans

salt and pepper to taste

Combine and let sit an hour to overnight.  

Great with sliced bread, but also yummy with a spoon.  It would probably be good with pasta or rice (or couscous!) or even on salad.