Kumquat Appetizer

Kumquats are a cute and sadly ignored little citrus that I hope you'll come to love and enjoy! Kumquat means "golden orange" in Chinese. They're about the size of a large grape, but instead of a burst of sweet, they fill your mouth with a delicious sweet-tart citrus flavor…like an orange and a lemon had a baby. They are native to China and now you can find them world-wide and especially in SoCal and Florida where they enjoy the warmer weather…and in my garden!

Like other citrus they are ready to harvest in late winter and if you let them ripen on the tree they get sweeter and sweeter as they grow. Other citrus you peel and eat, but the peel of the kumquat is too thin to peel and besides it is sweet and edible. When you bite in you get the sweet of the peel and then, surprise, the juicy and tart flesh.

It's a fun little treat on it's own, but here's a super easy recipe to make that really brings out all that flavor in a power bite of sweet, savory, salty goodness. My mother-in-law introducted this super sweet and easy recipe to me and even bought me a kumquat tree because I loved it so much.

I make these up in minutes for a fun and healthy appetizer – they're keto-friendly if you are careful! People are usually timid to try them but once they do the platter empties quickly.

If you live near me, please help me clear my tree and enjoy the harvest from late February through March.

Check out my other recipes coming soon for Kumquat Marmalade, Kumquate Asian Chicken, Kumquat Bread, and even cocktails – Kumquat Drop and Kumquatrita.