The first young, tender kumquats have arrived in New York's Chinatown, heaped on the vendors’ carts. Of course you can cook them for a bit in sugar syrup to make compote. But they’re most delicious eaten out of hand. Wash them under the tap and nibble them whole in two bites – tasty skin, un-bitter pith, soft nascent seeds and all. What other citrus invites that!