I grew up loving figs. My Sicilian born grandfather had fig trees in his back yard, and my grandmother used to harvest the fruit midsummer and make fig puree to later use when baking fig cookies every Christmas. Today, figs are becoming more popular and used in a variety of ways.
Fresh figs tossed with blue cheese and caramelized onions make for a great California style pizza, especially when drizzled with a little bit of brown butter. It's sweet, creamy, crusty and delicious, I'm a big lover of figs and goat cheese, and this makes for a great appetizer. Simply cover a thin slice of toasted baguette with diced fresh purple figs topped with crumble goat cheese and candied walnuts, place three of these fig bruschettas on a nest of fresh argulala for a great trendy $7 appetizer. For a mid-priced entrée, sear two center cut pork chops topped with flash grilled fig halves and roasted shallots drizzled with a reduced madeira wine.
