This past weekend I was locked inside my home as the tropical weather took over outside. As a self-proclaimed “mountain girl” I find that there isn’t much to do in Miami unless there is sunshine and only moderate levels of humidity. So when the weather is not great I get bored so easily. And then that is when great recipes are born.
On days like this I’m stuck in my kitchen, staring at the bountiful fresh food, trying to decide how to play with it in a new and delicious way. I could certainly eat the same thing over and over again … I’m like that. I find a meal and then I stick to it until I can’t imagine taking one more bite of it for the rest of my life (which is the exact reason I’ve forced myself to take a break from tahini because I don’t want to ever burn out from that delicious ingredient).
On this particular weekend I was staring at my fresh figs. I’ve used fresh figs in so many ways and I usually enjoy them blended with bananas .. it’s easy, delicious, nutritious, and a classic … but I feel like blending a beautiful fruit like the fig really is a disservice to the endless possibilities.
How could I not display such beauty??
I started thinking, “I wish there was a way I could just show off the inside of the fig, almost like a tribute to its beauty” … and then this came to life. It’s quite simple, really, and not an ingenious recipe when you see how few ingredients are actually involved. All credit is owed to the fig, itself.
That’s enough of my weird obsession with fruit, you just want the recipe ..
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Basic Figgy Base:
a recipe
1 cup dried figs, soaked
1/2 cup almonds, soaked
1/2 cup dates, soaked
1 T cinnamon
1/4 t nutmeg
pinch sea salt
Drain and rinse everything that has soaked. Place the dried figs in a food processor and process until chunky. Add the remaining and pulse until chunky. I like my crust to have a little crunch so I allow the almonds to remain fairly chunky.
Figgy Paste:
a recipe
1 cup medjool dates, soaked
4-5 fresh figs
2-3 T water
2-3 T water
Place the soaked dates with a little bit of the soak water in the food processor and process until a paste forms. Scrape down the sides as needed. After the paste has formed, add the fresh figs and process until smooth.
Figgy Display:
a method
as many fresh figs as needed
(I used about 10)
Slice your figs thinly and display in a circular pattern, starting from the outside and working your way in. Try to use the most beautifully ripened figs for more figgy goodness.
To do:
- Pulse the crust ingredients in a food processor until chunky.
- Dump the contents into a large tart pan and press down until even.
- Run the dates for the paste in the food processor with a couple tablespoons of water until a paste is formed.
- Add 4-5 fresh figs to the processor and process until smooth.
- Spread the paste atop the crust until it is evenly covered.
- Thinly slice your fresh figs and lay them over the paste in a circular shape, starting from the outside and working your way in.
- EAT.
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