Figs

All hail the fig! Um, yes, the under-appreciated fruit you'll find in the section of the grocery store with all the other produce they didn't know how to classify and therefore shoved in some random remote corner. The fig is adorable...just a little purple or green ball, like this one:

And internally, well, the color is gorgeous, like this fig we ate last month while visiting northeastern Spain:

Apparently, it is fig season. As figs don't grow well in the Northeast, if at all, this is news to me. When I see them at Adams, our beloved local grocery store, I usually treat myself to a few, despite their usually having a high price tag (sometimes upwards of a dollar per fig). Figs are terrific fruits because they can play for both teams.

You can use them in a chutney or in a salad. They pair well with chicken, duck and pork. I'd dare say that the little fig can uplift any savory undertaking. Oh, and don't forget cheese. Figs pair well with cheese.

On the sweet side, they provide an earthy nuance. A fig tart is a classic dessert. They are lovely paired with nuts. When I lived in Italy, a popular gelato flavor was fig and ricotta (see, it's all about the figs and cheese).

My favorite fig recipe comes from April Bloomfield, the chef at the Spotted Pig in New York. It is a fig salad with mozzarella cheese, lemon zest, thyme, olive oil and balsamic. It is the perfect combination of sweet and salty and tart. I've had fun playing with how to plate it.

I no longer use a recipe to make it. It was first published in Gourmet (R.I.P.) in 2006, but I've lost my copy and it is no longer posted on their website. However, you can find it here. I hope you have ripe figs where you live and are able to enjoy this simple, wonderful salad.