Impossible Persimmon-Apple Pie

I'm taking a break from refined sugar to recover from the holidays, but the smell of my housemate's homemade banana bread today gave me a powerful urge to bake something sweet. I used ingredients I had on hand and the memory of Bisquick Impossible Blackberry Pies that I used to make back in high school, and came up with this highly successful recipe!

They called it "Impossible Pie" because it's impossibly easy, and also because you pour batter into the bottom of a pie plate, and it rises up partially over the fruit during baking to make a top crust too. Impossible! It's basically a moist, eggy cake with fruit baked in, a little bit like a pudding cake.

Here's a picture of the slice that's packed in my lunch for tomorrow:



Impossible Persimmon-Apple Pie

"pie crust" ingredients:
Handful of hazelnuts
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 Tablespoons melted butter
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs
Generous dash of cinnamon
1 soft-ripe persimmon

"pie filling" ingredients:
3 tasty apples, peeled and thinly sliced (I used two yellow and one green) + 1/2 red-skinned apple (I used Braeburn, which was good because it held its shape), skin left on and chopped
1/4 cup raisins, soaked for 15 minutes in water or juice if you have time
1 tablespoon butter or more if needed

Start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees. Then throw the hazelnuts in the blender and blend for a few seconds to chop them. Add the rest of the "pie crust" ingredients and blend until smooth, about ten seconds.

Meanwhile, saute the apple slices in the 1 tablespoon butter until they begin to caramelize. Add the chopped apple (you want it to stay more intact) and the raisins, and cook for another minute or two, then remove from heat.

Into a greased cast-iron pan or pie plate, pour the "pie crust" batter. Distribute the apple and raisin mixture on top, place the whole thing in the oven, and bake for about 30 minutes, until a skewer poked into the middle comes out clean and the crust is nice and brown. Let cool for at least a few minutes before cutting. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This cake was nice and sweet, and it didn't need more sugar at all! It was also fast and really easy. If you don't have persimmon, you might try putting in another soft, sweet fruit like a banana or some applesauce.