‘Kishu’ Mandarins

A fruit so cute it’s the ‘Kishu’ (mandarin) of my eye and and my go-to winter snack. Author Becky Wheeler extolled these tiny, juicy morsels in her recent article ‘Seizing Citrus Season.’

Last fall I ordered  Australian finger limes (Citrus australasica syn. Microcitrus australasica) online; some people dabble in online gaming, spend hours on social media, or haunt discount shopping sites. Life will never be the same since I discovered novelty online fruit!

Lucky readers to the south can pick up these choice fruits of the season at their local farmers market, but here in the Pacific Northwest, citrus will always remain in the import category. So I was thrilled when I found  ‘Seedless Kishu’ at my local co-op.  At $6.99/pound they’re a bit dear. On the other hand, I only paid about $4.00 for the fruit pictured above; some people pay at least that for their daily caffeine fix. My beautifully packaged finger limes were considerably more, but worth every last cent for their unique form (& flavor) and absolutely stunning  served atop shucked Treasure Cove oysters!

Sure it’s winter. In all but the most southern parts of our coast the weather has been exceptionally cold these past few weeks.  All the more reason to keep your eyes open for these delicious fruits at their prime right now… and shaped like the sun.