A couple of things you might not have known about the kumquat: It is a bona fide Bizarro World citrus in that its peel is sweet and its flesh tart. It’s also a nose-to-tail kind of fruit: You can eat the eccentric little buggers whole—skin, seeds, and all. Just pop one in your mouth like an M&M and see. And kumquats go well with cognac—“the most kumquat-y†spirit out there, according to PDT general manager Jim Meehan, whose excellent kumquat-cobbler recipe follows.
Jim Meehan’s Kumquat Cobbler
3 kumquats
1 1/2 ounce Pierre Ferrand Ambre cognac
1/2 ounce Strega liqueur
1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
1/4 ounce Lemon Hart 151 Demerara rum
1/4 ounce simple syrup
Half lemon wheel for garnish
(1) Slice a thin wheel from the center of one of the kumquats and reserve. Muddle the kumquats, then add the rest of the ingredients to a cocktail shaker. (2) Shake with ice cubes and strain into a Collins glass filled with crushed or pebble ice. (3) Garnish with kumquat wheel attached to half lemon wheel with a cocktail pick.