“If I should wish a fruit brought to Paradise it would certainly be the fig.” - Prophet Mohammed

We don’t really “do” dessert. We really don’t. If we did we’d probably get a lot more hits from Tastespotting and Foodgawker, since they only seem to post chocolate flavored desserts topped liberally with powdered sugar and sprigs of mint. But bitterness aside, and in a kind of concession to both these photo sites and our own heavy bias towards savory dishes, we decided that it was time to make some sort of dessert, and a summery one at that.

Now, because we’re not bakers of any note, we decided to avoid baking, and indeed, cooking altogether, and simply arranged what nature and the bounty of our local grocery store had provided — namely, figs and greek yogurt decorated with honey and crushed pistachios. About as simple a preparation as you could imagine, right?

Serious About Figs

So, because there’s no recipe to speak of, I need to somehow extend this already overly long post, so here are some interesting tidbits about figs that I certainly wasn’t aware of, and I suspect, if you’re honest, you weren’t either.

Figs are the fruit of the ficus plant, or tree, and if you’ve ever had house plants, you’ll probably have had a ficus. While she was a student, my sister had one that survived heroically for six years on a steady diet of the dregs from cold cups of tea before meeting its tragic Waterloo being pulled out of her third floor window by an adventurous and powerful squirrel.

It is thought that figs (or ficus’) are among the most ancient genuses (genii?) of flowering plants being as much as 80 million years old, so it is little wonder then given the scientific accuracy of the Bible (note: this is irony) that they are described in its pages as the first fruit, and that it is with fig leaves that Adam and Eve hide their nakedness from the good Lord in the book of Genesis. In fact, contributors to the holy book were not the only ones to extol the virtues and practicalities of the fig, Roman poet, Pliny the Elder wrote, “Figs are restorative. They increase the strength of young people, preserve the elderly in better health and make them look younger with fewer wrinkles.”

In the intervening years, a wondrous variety of different kinds of figs have come into being — some through mutation, some by the hand of man, but today in the United States a couple of different kinds of fig predominate. The common or mission, fig is most, err common, and though, with its purple skin and pinky-peach flesh and yellow seeds it is at its best when fresh and ripe, sadly it is most often eaten dried. It was brought to North America by the Spanish and first planted in 1759 at San Diego Mission (hence the name). Later, the Smyrna fig variety arrived in California’s San Joaquin Valley from the eponymous town in modern-day Turkey in 1882 and was renamed Calimyrna later this century in honor of its new homeland. Other relatively easy to find varieties include the Kadota and Adriatic figs, the former is the American varietal of the Italian Dattato and is practically seedless, and the latter, well, is a variety originally from the Croatian coast, and is now very commonly made into, of all things, Fig Newtons.

Other interesting points about figs include: only the female fig is edible, and that figs are not really fruit as such, falling into the category of false fruits, (as indeed do strawberries, and many other berries) because the fig is, in fact, the flower and the seeds it contains are the fruit. Like I said, interesting, right? What? oh…

Anyway, it’s fig season right now through the end of September, so go get yourself some and enjoy them as if they were the first fruit! We have entered this simple and easy recipe in A Southern Grace’s Beat the Heat event since this is a great thing to make when it’s boiling hot outside.

Recipe (if you must have one) serves 4

12 ripe mission/common figs, split and spread as above

6-10oz plain Greek yogurt

2-3 tbsp runny honey

2 tbsp crushed pistachios

Assemble all these on plate and enjoy, perhaps with a chilled glass of dessert wine. We think something like a Pedro Ximenez or Moscatell would be rather nice.

Check out some other posts you may enjoy:

• CACIO E PEPE: SPAGHETTI WITH PECORINO AND BLACK PEPPER ROMAN-STYLE
• KILLING ANIMALS: HOW DO YOU REALLY FEEL ABOUT IT?
• JAMAICAN JERK CHICKEN WITH RICE AND PEA
• GRILLED STEAK WITH TARRAGON GARLIC BUTTER
• MASHED YUCA WITH SOUR ORANGE AND ALLSPICE

GRILLED LAMB CHOPS WITH HERBED YOGURT SAUCE AND PITA

Ingredients:

• 4 lamb shoulder chops (or any other type of lamb chop)
• 2 cups greek yogurt OR plain yogurt, drained
• 1 clove garlic, finely minced
• 1/4 cup minced parsley
• 1/4 cup minced mint
• 1/4 cup minced dill or fennel tops
• 3 tablespoon minced chives
• lemon juice
• salt and pepper
• pita, grilled

What to do:

1. If using non-Greek yogurt, make sure you drain your yogurt in a strainer lined with cheesecloth or paper towels for an hour or so. The thicker the better, so the longer you let it sit, the better.
2. Mix all your herbs in the yogurt along with the garlic, some lemon juice and salt. Stir and taste for seasoning or more lemon juice . Allow flavors to meld together for at least a half hour.
3. Season your lamb with plenty of kosher salt and fire up your grill or grill pan. When it’s nice and hot, grill your lamb on both sides for about 4 to 5 minutes on each side. Allow to rest for a few minutes before plating. Grill some pita bread next on each side for about a minute.
4. Plate your dish by topping each piece of grilled lamb with the herbed yogurt sauce and eat with a Greek Salad or grill some baby potatoes and toss with olive oil and some chunks of feta or even with some french fries! Sky’s the limit!

Check out some of these other posts you may enjoy:

• AUTHENTIC THIN-CRUST PIZZA
• SHREDDED CHICKEN SOPES WITH TOMATILLO AVOCADO SAUCE
• PASTA WITH LEEKS, ASPARAGUS, MUSHROOMS AND GRUYERE, TOPPED WITH A FRIED EGG
• WHOLE FISH BAKED IN SALT
• BLOOD ORANGE MARGARITAS
• FRIED LAMB RIB CHOPS WITH ROSEMARY-GARLIC REDUCED BALSAMIC
• PASTA (PERCIATELLI/BUCATINI OR SPAGHETTI) AL’AMATRICIANA (ROMAN CLASSIC PASTA DISH)

AVGOLEMONO SOUP (Greek Chicken Soup with Orzo, Egg and Lemon)

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• juice of 3 lemons (make sure they’re juicy!)
• 8 cups chicken stock
• some hot water (ONLY IF NECESSARY)
• 1 large chicken breast or 2 normal sized ones
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 1/2 cup orzo
• Salt and Pepper
• 1 teaspoon oregano

What to do:

1. Bring your chicken stock to a boil. Add chicken and diced onions (20-30 minutes in total depending on size).
2. After about 15 minutes, add your orzo (takes about 12 minutes to cook).
3. After your chicken is cooked (20-30 minutes), remove and let cool for a few minutes so you can shred it (throw in the freezer if time is limited). Lower the heat on your chicken stock to low just to keep it warm. Ladle about 2 or 3 cups of the stock into a bowl to cool (you will use this to mix in with the egg and lemon mixture – must be cool to prevent it from curdeling).
4. Squeeze the lemon into a Pyrex measuring cup (or something with a spout).
5. Meanwhile, the fun part. Crack your eggs in a large bowl and vigorously whisk until the mixture looks foamy. Slowly add (while whisking at the same time) your lemon juice into the foamy egg until it is completely incorporated.
6. While continuing to whisk the foamy egg mixture, slowly add your warm/cool stock that you reserved in another bowl from step 3 until it’s completely mixed in with the egg mixture (again, make sure it’s not boiling hot – you don’t want this to scramble!).

7. Slowly add this mixture back into the pot. Shred the chicken and add back into the pot. Add oregano. If extra liquid is needed, add a bit of water. Allow to come back to a decent temperature and serve immediately.

CHECK OUT SOME OTHER POSTS YOU MAY ENJOY:

• SWEET ANISE-FLAVORED SALMON IN A POUCH (SALMON EN PAPILLOTE)
• GROUND LAMB KABOBS (Lamb Kubideh)
• BRAISED PORK CHOPS WITH LIME AND OLIVES
• KOREAN-STYLE PORK RIBS IN PRESSURE COOKER
• ROASTED PORK SHOULDER (Pernil) – The Quicker Version
• LIDIA’S LAMB CHOPS (Lamb Chops with A Mustard Anchovy Sauce)
• WHOLE FISH BAKED IN SALT