Arugula with Kumquats, Dates and Parmesan
It has been awhile since I have sung the praises of my weekly, organic produce delivery from New Leaf Grocery. It has really changed my life and introduced me to new ingredients that would not normally grace my countertops. A flavorful grab bag of grown goodies, sometimes weekly surprises are better than others. Last week’s treasure, nestled between the usual salad greens and bananas… a bag of kumquats!
They rested in my fruit bowl for a week before I took the time to figure out what to make with them. Finally I stumbled on the Kumquat Growers website and all these recipes! Since I happened to have arugula in my weekly delivery as well, this was my first experiment.
The salad was flavorful, colorful and a welcome retreat from our usual greens.
Salad of Kumquats, Dates and Shaved Parmesan
5 kumquats
4 handfuls baby arugula
½ cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 Medjool dates, pitted and diced
¼ cup Parmesan shavings (made +++with a vegetable peeler)
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.
Slice the kumquats into thin rounds, discarding the seeds. Combine the arugula, parsley, dates, kumquats and Parmesan in a large bowl. Whisk together the lemon juice and olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Pour over the salad and toss. Serves 4.
May 9th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
I haven’t ever had kumquats in a salad before, but you sure can’t go wrong with top quality parmesan, dates and arugula! If nothing else the kumquats add lovely color to your photo. How was the flavor addition?
May 9th, 2008 at 9:28 pm
i cannot rave enough about our local organic produce delivery (growing power) either. every friday is like christmas around here with new treats to taste & delicious delights to enjoy that we would have never indulged ourselves in before! this week - enormous mushrooms, two of them with heads the size of my entire hand!