Kumquat Onion Compote

These tiny, bright, olive shaped oranges are strange little creatures. There’s not much fruit inside. They can be eaten as is, skin and all, but you might find them to be too bitter to just pop them in your mouth while you’re watching tv.

But when they’re cooked down until soft, they’re utterly transformed. At their simplest, cooked with a little sugar in water, they’re very nice.

Add some spices like cinnamon, ginger, or star anise, and they’re even better. Prepared this way, they make a great dessert topping.

This Kumquat Onion Compote is my favorite thing to do with a container of kumquats. They’re a little bit sweet, nicely spiced, and are made savory with the addition of caramelized onions. You can enjoy them with pretty much anything center-of-the-plate, and they’re so good with labne or yogurt for breakfast.

They don’t take long to prep and don’t need much attention while they cook for an hour.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as avocado or sunflower

• 1 tablespoon ground coriander

• 3 medium onions, finely diced (3 cups)

• 2 cups dry white wine

• 1 cup sugar

• 2 bay leaves

• 1 pkg kumquats, quartered; seeds removed

• 3/4 teaspoon ground juniper berries

• 1 teaspoon chopped thyme

• 1 cup fresh orange juice

• a pinch of kosher salt

Method:

• Heat the oil in a medium saucepan. Add the coriander and cook over moderate heat for 30 seconds, until the spice releases its flavor.

• Add the onions with a pinch of salt and sauté them over medium-low heat until they’re golden brown.

• Add the wine, sugar, bay leaves, kumquats, juniper berries, thyme and orange juice and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture thickens and is reduced to 2 cups, about 1 hour.

• Let the compote cool to room temperature, then discard the bay leaves. Serve warmed or at room temperature.