In Seasoning: Figs

- figs front and centre; and a recipe for Figs Baked in Pedro Ximenez and Rosemary

A ripe fig is a prize to be cherished. Not just for its deliciousness, but for the surprising rarity of having got hold of a fig in its absolute perfect moment of ripeness. When a little drop of its nectar is glistening where the fruit meets its stalk, the skin seeming barely able to contain the sweet fruit…

From: Seasoning - How To Cook and Celebrate the Seasons / Autumn / Figs

Figs are now front and centre in my early-autumn kitchen, and given Seasoning is packed with ideas of ways to use them and flavour partners to amplify, I’ve pulled out for you here just some of my favourite figgy thoughts from across those pages - just to get things warmed up on the fig front:

• If you find yourself with any slightly not-quite-ripe figs they will benefit a lot from ways of using that draw out their natural sugars. Grilling fig halves or slices is good for that, as long as you keep a close eye that they don’t go too far and burn. You just want the heat to lift the sugars to the surface and caramelise them.

• Roasting achieves the same goal. Do them whole and embrace how they will burst open with juicy, sticky flavour. Or halve/slice and roast. You just always need to make sure there’s enough liquid with them in the dish as they roast, to make sure that ‘sticky’ doesn’t become ‘stuck’.

• Salty cheeses are one of the umami big-guns that figs love. Try raw figs opened up with a cross-cut, stuffed with mascarpone, given a drizzle of honey, a drop or two of rosewater and some salt to finish. Could that be dessert or even breakfast on a warm autumn day? Very often, yes. And just as lovely are baked figs with a soft cheese, such as gorgonzola or mozzarella.