You can thank Martha Stewart for the bright and sparkly Ginger-Kumquat Collins cocktail you see here. Though it’s not her recipe I’m going to give her some backhanded credit anyway.
You see, I was thumbing through a decade-old copy of Martha Stewart Living recently. It wasn’t really looking for anything more than a distraction from the Corona doldrums and Martha’s magazine is a guilty pleasure of mine. Sure it bugs that almost everything about the magazine is geared towards women. But that’s alright, I skip right past the make-up tips and arts and crafts stuff and look at her recipes. She always features creative yet approachable seasonal ingredients with pretty pictures.
Or, I should say she usually does.
Its spring here in Los Angeles and it really feels like it too. So I’m not sure why I pulled out a November issue of the magazine, but I did and I came across this sentiment: “Greet Thanksgiving guests with a tart and tangy kumquat sour cocktail.”
Where I live kumquats are a spring crop. In fact, my kumquat tree is brimming with fruit as I type this. So her cocktail seemed odd to me. As did the Cranberry-Kumquat Sauce she was serving with her turkey.
Ok, cranberries and thanksgiving I get, but how did kumquats come to be associated with Thanksgiving. Did the Pilgrims grow kumquats in specialized off-season greenhouses? Martha’s Thanksgiving cocktail featured kumquats stirred with bourbon, I guess the bourbon in some way makes it a holiday tipple. But not the kumquats.
Ginger-Kumquat Collins
These are the things I think about in lockdown. I know they may not seem all that important but at least they led me outside on a beautiful spring day to harvest the last of my kumquats. I have Martha to thank for that, but I’ll take the rest of the credit for this Ginger-Kumquat Collins cocktail. Thank you very much. It’s a springy riff on the classic Tom Collins. It’s easy to make, it’s pretty in the glass. It’s a little sweet and a little sour. It may seem like a light little sparkler, but this Ginger-Kumquat Collins is still plenty potent enough to work its warm weather magic. GREG
Ingredients
- 3 ounce London dry gin
- 1 ounce fresh squeezed lemon juice
- 1 ounce kumquat-ginger syrup (see recipe)
- club soda (as needed)
- candied kumquats (optional)
Directions
Shake all ingredients over ice and strain into a 12-oz Collins glass filled with ice cubes. Top with club soda to taste. Garnish with candied kumquats (if using)
Ingredients
- 5 ounce fresh kumquats (about 20 halved crosswise, seeds removed)
- 4 ounce fresh ginger (peeled and thinly sliced cross-wise)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
Directions
Place everything into a saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer gently until the kumquats soften but still hold their shape, about 15 minutes. Allow the syrup to cool, then strain into a clean jar. You may keep the candied ginger and kumquats for another use if you like. The syrup will keep for several weeks in the refrigerator.
Beautifully done.
Hey, we could all use a light little sparkler at the moment! Neat drink — thanks.
I adore all of the ingredients and can’t wait to get my hands on some kumquats to try this. Hope they are still in the stores when I am able to go out into the world again.
I still get Martha’s magazine. Still love it. 🙂 My favorite part about your recipe is that you can step into your own backyard for the ingredients. ~Valentina
I could use a sip and it’s only 6:30am… but that could be the COVID-19 talking. Kumquats have multiple seasons here in Tucson… spring, as you have, but also fall into winter. Some fruit year-round. Odd plant. Anyway, next time I get a few I will make soMe syrup. Lovely cocktail, Greg.
How wonderful to have a kumquat tree in your backyard! I used to love MS but they were horrifically expensive to subscribe to in Canada so I’d buy the odd issue as a treat. I had kept the issues but tossed them a few years ago when I was comfortable that any recipe I need could be found on the web! Now I wish I still had them.
This recipe sounds refreshing and it’s very pretty too. I used to know a guy named Tom Collins, I kid you not.
I think I know the issue you’re describing, and I believe I’ve made that sour. I don’t subscribe to the magazine anymore, but I used to, years ago … before her prison days. It seems that it was after lockup that the magazine started presenting articles on things like make-up, and then I didn’t see the point of it anymore. // Anyway, about kumquats … where I live, they are almost impossible to find except around Thanksgiving and Christmas … although as I write that, I realize that I’m aware that over the years, they’ve become easier to find. Given that, I’m surprised that they’re a spring crop! I have a kumquat upside-down cake that I smother in warm toffee sauce, and I usually figure that I can only make it during the holidays! // But enough of that, I’d love one of these cocktails! I’m going to have to go looking for kumquats!