boozy kumquat marmalade

it is 

a thousand degrees

in my kitchen

so warm

i keep the lights off

somehow believing

darkness=cool

not. really. working

yesterday

hubster and i

did a drive by pick off

you see

the day before

we were at my brother's new home

and i noticed

a line of

kumquat trees

my brother

didn't know what they were

so i figured

he wouldn't mind

if i took 

a handful or 10

yesterday

while he was at work

we helped ourselves

today

i didn't feel much like

hovering over the hob

stirring 

&

canning

which led to

a small batch

3 jars of jam

one for us

one for him

and

one for pouring over vanilla ice cream

no canning required

with a sweet as honey peel

and

puckering sour flesh

kumquats make a perfect marmalade

add a splash of booze

and 

it becomes an adult only

morning treat

boozy kumquat marmalade

3 cups finely slice kumquats (pits removed)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 generous shot tequila

pinch of kosher salt

place all ingredients in a glass or ceramic bowl and let steep for about an hour.  dump into a heavy-bottom pot and cook over medium heat. let simmer until it becomes jammy..about 20 minutes. stir occasionally and watch it closely. you do not want it to become like sticky candy.  pour into sterilized jam jars and allow to come to room temperature.  store in the refrigerator.  

k is for kumquat

 i love the kumquat

it is 

sweet on the outside

and oh so sour

inside

sort of like 

a 

john hughes character

truth be told

i would rather

eat them straight

than 

cook with them

but today

i decide to build a treat

around kumquats

panna cotta with kumquat confit
(printable recipe)

(say that 10 times fast!)

kumquat confit

10-15 kumquats--sliced thinly lengthwise

1 cup granulated sugar

1 cup water

pinch salt

put sugar and water into a pot and bring to a boil  toss in salt and kumquats. let cook for 5 minutes then turn off heat. allow to cool completely.  Remove kumquats with slotted spoon and place on silpat or parchment paper.  Store sugar water separately.  The kumquats should be good and gooey.  The sugar water should taste citrusy. I use it to flavor my tea, or you can boil it up again and use it in your favorite marshmallow recipe.  If you want to store the kumquat for longer than a day, put in a jar, add a bit of the sugar water and put in the fridge.

vanilla panna cotta

1 1/2 cups cream

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt

2 tsp powdered gelatin

3 Tbs cold water

Place cream, milk, sugar and salt in a saucepan.  In a small bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the water and let sit for a few minutes.  Heat the cream until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is simmering. do not let it boil.  turn off heat, and drop in the gelatin and stir until it is dissolved.  you may need to put it back on the fire to completely dissolve the gelatin, but do it over a gentle heat.  Add vanilla.  Pour into 4 ramekins or other serving pieces.  If you want to serve the panna cotta unmolded, put a little oil around the bottom and sides before filling, for insurance.  Refrigerate for about 4 hours or overnight.  Serve plain or with a bit of the confit, or sugared berries.

I am participating in alphabe-thursday over at 

jenny matlock

you should go check it out

and see what all the fun is about

this week

sponsored by the letter K