Poached Kumquats Recipes

Steps:

• Wash and trim off the ends of: 1 pound kumquats.
• Slice them crosswise into 1/8- to 1/4-inch pinwheels, removing the seeds as you go. Combine in a small saucepan: 2 cups water, 1 cup sugar, One 1-inch piece of vanilla bean, split lengthwise, seeds scraped into the pan.
• Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Adjust the heat to a low simmer and add the sliced kumquats. Let them cook gently until translucent and tender, about 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and let them cool in the poaching syrup.

Steps:

• Butter eight 3-by-2-inch ramekins; sprinkle 1 teaspoon sugar in the bottom of each; set aside. Place kumquats, remaining cup sugar, and 1/2 cup water in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low. Simmer until kumquats are soft, 15 to 20 minutes. Place kumquats in bottom of each ramekin; set aside. Reserve liquid for poaching whole kumquats for garnish, if desired.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine dates and baking soda in a bowl; add 1 cup boiling water; stir to combine; set aside. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; set aside. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat 4 tablespoons butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Add flour mixture; beat until combined. Add date mixture and walnuts; beat until combined. Pour batter into ramekins. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Run a knife around puddings' edges; unmold. Drizzle with toffee sauce.

Steps:

• Prepare and cook: 12 Buckwheat Crêpes (opposite).
• Stack the crêpes as they are cooked. Don't refrigerate them if you are using them within a few hours.
• Prepare: Poached kumquats (page 365).
• Prepare the tangerine butter. Remove, with a fine grater, the zest from: 1 tangerine.
• Cut the fruit in half and squeeze the juice into a measuring cup.
• In a small bowl mix together: 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, softened, 2 tablespoons sugar.
• Beat until soft and creamy and then, with a fork, stir in the zest and half of the tangerine juice. When mixed stir in: 2 tablespoons Grand Marnier or Cointreau.
• This will take a while, but keep stirring until the liquid is incorporated. If possible add a bit more of the tangerine juice. The butter will appear lumpy; this is not a problem.
• Remove a crêpe from the stack and, with the pale side up, spread a spoonful of butter over half of the crêpe. Fold the crêpe in two over the butter, and then in half again to make a triangle. Repeat with the rest of the crêpes. Lay them out in a buttered baking dish in slightly overlapping rows. If desired, sprinkle them lightly with more liqueur. Right before serving, bake the crêpes in a preheated 350°F oven for 5 to 8 minutes to warm through. While the crêpes are heating in the oven, warm the poached kumquats. Serve the crêpes hot from the oven and top each serving with a few spoonfuls of poached kumquats and their syrup.
• Serve the crêpes with the segments of 3 tangerines, raw with their juice, instead of the poached kumquats.
• Instead of the tangerine, use an orange or a blood orange to make the butter. Use only 1 teaspoon of its zest and start with about one third of its juice.
• Serve with vanilla ice cream or tangerine sherbet.

Steps:

• Scrape seeds from vanilla bean into water with lime juice in a small heavy saucepan, then add pod, sugar, and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then simmer 3 minutes. Add kumquats and simmer, covered, until they just begin to soften, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Put pears in a heatproof bowl. Pour kumquats and syrup over pears and toss gently, then cool.
• Chill fruit, covered, at least 2 hours.

Steps:

• To poach the prunes, combine one-fourth cup of the sugar with 1 cup of water in a small saucepan, add the tea bags (sans tags) and bring to a gentle simmer, stirring so the sugar dissolves.
• Add the prunes to hot tea syrup and steep with lid on for about 20 minutes until the prunes are tender. If your prunes are large or quite dry, they make take longer. Stir occasionally.
• Once the prunes are tender allow the mixture to cool to room temperature. Remove the tea bags and gently squeeze them to extract additional flavor before discarding them. Set aside the prunes (with their liquid).
• To glaze the kumquats, bring 1 cup of water, the remaining one-fourth cup sugar and the kumquats to a boil in a small saucepan.
• Reduce the heat to a gentle boil and cook for about 10 minutes, keeping an eye on them during the last few minutes as the liquid reduces and becomes syrupy. Cool to room temperature.
• Serve the prunes with a bit of their liquid in deep soup plates, with kumquats strewn over the top.

Steps:

• For candied kumquats:
• Stir sugar and 1 1/2 cups water in large saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and bring to boil. Add kumquats; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until soft mixture to medium bowl. Cool. Cover and chill until cold. DO AHEAD: Can be made 5 days ahead. Keep chilled.
• Before using, pour kumquat mixture through strainer; set kumquats aside for trifle. (Reserve syrup for another use.)
• For wine-poached cranberries :
• Stir wine and sugar in large saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and boil wine mixture 5 minutes. Add cranberries and simmer until soft but still intact, about 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to medium bowl. Cool. Cover and chill until cold. DO AHEAD: Can be made 5 days ahead. Keep chilled.
• Before using, pour cranberry mixture through strainer; set cranberries aside for trifle. (Reserve syrup for another use.)
• For gingerbread cake:
• Combine stout and molasses in large saucepan. Bring to boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; stir in baking soda (mixture will foam up). Let stand until completely cool, about 1 hour.
• Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 350°F. Generously butter three 8-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides. Dust pans with flour; tap out excess. Whisk 2 cups flour and next 6 ingredients in large bowl to blend. Whisk eggs and both sugars in medium bowl to blend. Whisk oil, then stout mixture into egg mixture. Gradually whisk stout-egg mixture into flour mixture. Stir in fresh ginger. Divide batter among prepared pans (about 12/3 cups for each).
• Place 2 cake pans on top rack and 1 cake pan on bottom rack of oven. Bake until tester inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, reversing position of pans halfway through baking, about 28 minutes total. Cool cakes in pans on rack 15 minutes. Invert cakes onto racks; cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap in plastic; store at room temperature.
• For mascarpone cheese:
• Using electric mixer, beat mascarpone in large bowl until smooth. Add all remaining ingredients and beat until peaks form and mixture is smooth (do not overbeat or mixture may curdle). Cover and chill up to 2 hours.
• Using serrated knife, cut each of 2 cakes in half horizontally for a total of 4 cake layers. (Reserve remaining cake for another use.) Trim 1 cake layer to 7-inch round. Place trimmed cake round in bottom of 7 3/4-inch-diameter, 43/4-inch-deep trifle dish. Scatter scant 1/2 cup drained kumquats in single layer over cake. Top with 11/3 cups mascarpone cream, spreading evenly to sides of dish. Sprinkle 1/2 cup drained cranberries over. Repeat 2 more times with cake layer, kumquats, mascarpone cream, and cranberries. Top with fourth cake layer. Spread 1 1/3 cups mascarpone cream over. Spoon remaining cream into pastry bag fitted with large star tip. Pipe rosettes of mascarpone cream around top edge of dish. Tent loosely with foil; chill at least 4 hours. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep chilled. Cover and chill remaining kumquats and cranberries separately.
• Scatter remaining kumquats and cranberries over center of trifle and serve.
• An Italian cream cheese; sold at many supermarkets and at Italian markets.