Regardless of this article my brother sent me recently from Knowledge Nuts, I love fresh figs. Second only to a warm, heavy peach dripping with juice, figs are probably my favorite fruit. They are exquisite, if you've never had one. Exotic. Sensual. Bite into one and you will understand why the Renaissance painters used them in their paintings to allude to sex.
And they were $3.99 at the grocery store the other day! Imagine! $3.99 for nine plump little parcels of heaven.
I snatched up a package and a wedge of good bleu cheese, then came home and created a little appetizer to nibble in front of the fire with Chef Reiton while our chicken finished its roasting:
They're pretty, aren't they? If you want an appetizer to impress that takes a whole 10 minutes to prepare from start to finish, try these out. Here's what you've got to do (adjust quantities to suit your party size. I used 4 whole figs for the 2 of us):
Ingredients:
- fresh figs, halved through the stem so you've got a little "handle" to pick them up with
- good bleu cheese
- pecan halves
To prepare:
Heat your oven to 400° OR you can toast these if you have a toaster oven.
Lay the figs on a foil or parchment-lined cookie sheet. I used the little pan that fits in our toaster oven.
With a butter knife and your finger, place a tiny plop of bleu cheese on top of each fig half. You don't need much; bleu cheese is very pungent. The size of two really big peas is a good amount.
Gently press a pecan half on top of the bleu cheese on each fig.
Roast or toast your figs for about 4 minutes. The nuts will be toasty and the cheese bubbly.
Let them cool a minute, then plate and serve warm.
Give them a try and let me know what you think! I think you might be surprised by the wonderful mix of flavors and textures. Soft figs with crunchy pecans. Sweet and toasty and salty and earthy. Delightful!
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