The Persimmon Festival

Fall makes an excellent season for indulging in gastronomic delights. One of the events is being held right now in Slovenia, 5 km off the medieval town of Piran; for the last 12 years they have been celebrating a festival dedicated to persimmon there.

It is a very curious culinary festivity including exhibitions of persimmon of all kinds, tasting persimmon gourmet dishes – jam, cakes, bread, ice cream, cognac. Other entertainments are walks around the gardens of the Strunjan natural reserve and the biggest fruit competition.

Persimmon was brought to the Slovakian coasts at the beginning of the XX century, and now almost one third of the Strunjan soil is given over to persimmon plantations.

Persimmon is rich in vitamins, minerals, cellulose. It contains 5 times as much Vitamin C and 30 times as much Vitamin A as an apple. Other substances that are important for health are pectins, tanning agents, potassium, calcium, iron.

Persimmon’ s beneficial qualities are numerous: it improves metabolism, lowers cholesterol level, helps fight back onsets of exhaustion, stress, strengthens the immune system and heart functions.