Kumquat, Fennel and Blood Orange Salad

Did you know it's the peels of kumquat that are musky and sweet, while the inner flesh is on the bitter side? I didn't, as my only kumquat experience was in a kumquatini at the Hungry Cat, until I made the clemenquat salad from the book Super Natural Cooking a few weeks ago.

That salad pairs kumquats and clementines with thin slices of mild celery--while tasty, I wanted something with a bit more bite. Thinly sliced fennel did the trick, adding a licoricy crunch. Segments of a nearly-black blood orange, a quick vinaigrette of grapefruit juice and "fragrant and fruity" olive oil, salt and pepper finished this pre-dinner salad, making the sausage I was about to consume seem less artery-clogging.

The entire kumquat is edible, peel and all, making them perfect for slicing into all sorts of salads and desserts. Because of their delicate skins, I use a serrated knife to cut them which helps retain their shape. Here are some more kumquat recipes:

Kumquat compote from Seattle Bon Vivant
Kumquat salsa from Vanilla Garlic
Kumquat chutney from Fresh Approach Cooking