Simple Observations

If you sit quietly for just a moment you can hear the birds chirping outside.  They are in a great mood because spring is here and bugs and worms are up for grabs.  The cats are also happy because they can sit and watch the birds from the window, imagining if they come just a little bit closer they’ll be able to catch one with a mighty pounce.  It’s animal nature to be on the hunt, always on the prowl for the next meal headed down the food chain.  It’s a respectable and inescapable part of our lives, one I am certainly happy to indulge. 

This week’s dessert is a perfect example of acquiescing to the call of the wild.  Now, being in New York City most days of the week, a different kind of wild takes precedent.  Many times the wild is the people, and you are trying to avoid the next jam or cluster on the street, or possibly the dog droppings left on the sidewalk some not very helpful owner forgot to clean up.   Maybe the wild element is chasing the next bargain or sale in some cute boutique that just opened down the street from another cute boutique you used to frequent.  But maybe, the best “wild” of all is the feeling that comes over you from the scent of food from a street vendor or the visual of a flower or grocery display as you pass in front of a window.  There are so many chances for an urge to take over in a city such as New York.

For me, my urge was found in none other than Grand Central Station.  The marketplace contained within is always bursting forth with bounty.  Every Friday night, after a long workweek, I like to casually stroll down its long isle in search of something to take home.  Usually it’s a nice big block of Parmesan cheese from Murray’s.  Sometimes it’s cured meats, sometimes flowers and occasionally a loaf of bread falls into my hands when I find I don’t have time to make some of my own.  The find this time was a package of kumquats.

To be honest, I’ve never purchased kumquats before.  I don’t know that I’ve ever even eaten a kumquat (at least knowingly), and boy have I been missing out!  There they were, just sitting in the corner of a fruit stand...waiting.  It was the color that called to me, that instinctive part of me switched on and I knew I had to have them.  Having never eaten the fruit I didn’t know what I was getting, and I had to look at the package label to even know what they were.   It didn’t matter at that point, I just knew I had to take them home with me and figure out something to do with them.

I left the kumquats on the counter overnight, unsure of what to do with my purchase.  In the morning I opened the package and took a bite.  Strange!!!  The flesh is sweet and the inside is sour!  It also has a bitterness I quite liked.  It made me think of lemons, grapefruits and oranges all in one, and I loved it!  Still unsure of what to do, I took the train into the city for a deep-tissue massage (the last of the birthday treats I gave to myself).

While on the train I began to do a little research on how other people use these tiny citrus fruits.  Apparently they are most commonly candied or used in jams, and are quite common in dishes around the holidays.  Well, so much for thinking I was using something “seasonal”.  I guess it still is citrus season, but I wasn't in the mood for anything too heavy or spicy with all the warm weather, so I just let the kumquats sit in the back of my mind and percolate while I went to the spa.

It was a gorgeous days outside and I brought my camera along with me in case I found any floriferous goodies to take a picture of.  I knew of a stand of trees lousy with cherry blossoms over at the NYU campus.  This space isn’t far from where I work, and every year there comes a week when the trees are in full bloom with a carpet of tulips underneath.  This is that week, and I was determined to get a photograph this year.  I somehow usually seem to miss it, and because I had time to stroll along on my way to my massage I was able to stop and really appreciate them. 

Many people were walking along and taking photographs of the exact same thing.  The urge to hold onto beauty, taking on mass form in the cameras and eyes of all the passersby, I love it when that happens.  There is something to capturing a moment all your own with a camera, but seeing the same appreciation you feel on the faces of others reminds you of human connections we share.  And let’s not forget, cherry blossoms are rather pink…my favorite.

So after my excursion to the city, I decided on the train ride home what I might do with the kumquats.  I have been meaning to make a very simple cake I found a couple of months ago.  It is of course one of my dear Martha Stewart recipes for a Lemon-Fig Cake.  The great thing about this recipe is it's quickly prepared in two bowls, and no mixer is used at all.  I wanted to try this cake because I adore lemon and because the main liquid ingredient is olive oil.  I’ve certainly used vegetable oils in quickbreads and carrot cakes, but I don’t recall using olive oil.  And because I didn’t have any regular olive oil on hand I went with the extra-virgin olive oil that was in the pantry.

The recipe calls for 1-1/2 cups of dried figs, which I had, but I thought it might be nice to use only a cup of figs and add in the kumquats to round out the amount.  Because of their potency, I was afraid to use too much more for fear of throwing off the balance in the cake.  The extra-virgin olive oil was already “fruitier” than the regular version, and adding the kumquats really boosted the brightness level of this cake.  I’m sure the recipe written as is would be great, but I think my tweaks and additions made it soar (if I do say so myself).  The cake is sweet, but not overpoweringly so and you can really taste the olive oil.  It all seems very Mediterranean or Italian somehow, and the romantic in me likes that.  I’m sure you will like it too.

Inspiration is always hanging out around the corner, maybe down a dark alley from time to time, but a nicely lit shopping isle will suit me fine.  It’s good to rely on instinct and to try an ingredient you’ve never used or even tasted before.  You might be as pleasantly surprised as I was.  I’ve learned that not only are kumquats pretty to look at, but they taste amazing.  It’s all about going with your gut.  I know I do.  It’s just who I am.