Kumquat Marmalade

I live in “Citrus country” or I should say state.

Strangely I hadn’t heard of kumquat until we moved to CA over a decade ago. So the first time I saw a Kumquat was a tag hanging from a citrus plant while browsing the nursery at my local Home Depot. At first, I thought looking at the little tag, it was some sort of a dwarf variety of Orange fruit or a Bonsai. So I picked the plant, and planted it in a large pot and placed it full sun just as the instruction said so.

Lo and behold, that spring/summer there was a profusion of white flowers with scent I had never smelled before.

Simply enigmatic.

 

 

Then with the natural course of life, the same flowers ended up as these beautiful little mini green oranges, so I patiently waited for them to grow bigger, which never happened and they ripened. I was a little disappointed and excited to have discovered something new.

When I bit into it for the first time the tartness hit me followed by an interesting juxtapose of flavors: sweet and bitter. I have to say, they are intense with a strong citrus punch. So we seldom eat them as a fruit. I usually cook with them, and marmalade is one of our favorite ways to eat them. This recipe is not exactly a marmalade but more of a fruit preserve with much less sugar, I keep it refrigerated and eat it within a few weeks. I quarter the fruit so its chunky with thicker pieces of fruit. This might sound strange but, I love to eat it with greek yogurt for breakfast or as a dessert.

 

 

Right now citruses are at its peak and you see them everywhere. Every front yard, backyard and even parking lots have a tree: navels, meyer lemons and everything in between.

Here is the recipe

 

 

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Kumquat Marmalade

Ingredients

  • About 30 pieces of kumquats washed and towel dried
  • 1/4 to 1/2 cup raw sugar (depends on how sweet you like it)
  • 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 1/2 cup lemon juice
  • 1/8 tsp ground cardamom (optional)
  • a few drops of orange blossom water

Instructions

  1. Cut the clean fruit into quarters and put them with the sugar in a non reactive bowl.
  2. Leave it in the fridge to macerate overnight. This helps the fruit to breakdown and give out it juices.
  3. Add the cardamom, orange and lemon juice to the fruit mixture and bring it to a boil in a sauce pan. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook covered for about 30 minutes. By now the juice should have evaporated and fruit cooked. It should have a jam like consistency.
  4. Take it off the heat and add orange blossom water if you like floral scent in your food.Leave it to cool.
  5. Spoon it into sterile jars and keep it refrigrated.
  6. Its great with yogurt, scones or any plain baked item.
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Verdict

 

 

 

 

  • http://twitter.com/ohmyveggies Oh My Veggies

    I always admire kumquats when I see them at the grocery store, but I never know what to do with them so I don’t bother buying them. Marmalade sounds like a fantastic idea!