August is the season for figs in Vancouver. I know this because on a bi-daily basis, my neighbour comes over with a huge bowl of figs for me to turn into something delicious. He has 5 trees that bare 2 kinds of figs of which I don’t know the name, but each one has green skin, one variety is large with sweet, mild white flesh that turns golden as it gets really ripe, and a smaller variety that has red flesh and is a bit tangier.
Two years ago I used the white-fleshed figs when they were really ripe to make fig ginger jam. I skinned every fig and just used the flesh for this jam with lots of texture from the seeds and chunks of candied ginger. It turned out so well that I saved and savoured the jars knowing they would have to last. One sad, sad day my last two jars hit the tile floor on the laundry room and smashed in a glassy figgy mess. As I was contemplating licking it off the floor (and picking the glass off my tongue from the splatter that hit my leg), I decided I better make some more to avoid this sort of desperate craziness.
In 2009, I used both kinds of figs together to make jam, again making Fig Ginger Jam , but this time I left on the skins. This changed the colour and texture of the jam as I needed to pulse the jam with an immersion blender to chop up the skins this time making it thicker. And because I had added the candied ginger in the jam before blending, there were no yummy candied ginger chunks. The colour was not nearly as nice as the 2008 jam (which was a rich, shiny, golden colour) but it tasted just as good.
I made a second Jam in 2009 as well, Fig, Brandy and Honey Mandarine. This had a lot more citrus and some richness from the brandy both of which went very well with the figs.
Then came August 2010:
I don’t know if it is a love for figs, the daily harvest delivery from my neighbour, or the squirrel in me but I made 7 recipes from the figs this year:
Oh, and I froze some halved figs too. Whew. I actually went out yesterday to see if the trees had any more ripe figs (um, crazy) and thankfully, that’s it for the year. I can put this figgy month to bed enjoying a pantry full of riches, of the fig persuasion.
August 31 2010 | Baking and Canning and Gardening and Growing Food and Harvest and Projects | 22 Comments »
This was originally printed in the New York Times, Wednesday September 9, 1992 in an article called Eating Well by Marian Burros.
Ingredients:
-
3/4 c sugar
- 1/2 c unsalted butter
- 1 c flour, sifted
- 1 tsp baking powder
- Pinch salt, optional
- 2 eggs
- 12 Italian prune plums
- Sugar and lemon juice for topping
- 1 tsp cinnamon, or to taste
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cream butter and sugar in a bowl. Add flour, baking powder, salt and eggs and beat well. Spoon the batter into an 8”, 9”, or 10” spring form pan. Split and pit the plums and place the halves, skin side up, on top of the batter. Sprinkle lightly with sugar and lemon, depending o the sweetness of the fruit. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Bake about an hour. Remove and cool; refrigerate or freeze if desired. Or cool to lukewarm and then serve plain or with whipped cream. Yield: 8 servings. Note: to freeze, double wrap torte in aluminum foil place in plastic bag, and seal. To serve, defrost and reheat briefly at 300 degrees.
For variation:
Strawberry Coconut Torte
Blueberry Lime Torte
Whole Wheat Caramelized Fig Torte with Amaretto Caramel
September 28 2009 | Baking and Harvest and Recipes | 3 Comments »
At my community garden, there is an organic heritage orchard with a number of large apple, pear, quince, and Asian pear trees. There is also a bunch of rows of espalier apple trees. The heritage apple varieties on the espaliers are so unique that I thought it would be fun to pick up the fallen apples and make an applesauce with the 40 or so different flavours. I was right, it was fun. Cutting open the apples, fearing a worm, but finding crisp white or golden or even pink flesh was a thrill. The flavour? Well, the richness and zing they provide to the final applesauce is magnificent. I’ve posted the recipe here so that no more poor fallen apples will ever have to go uneaten.
-
-
Fallen apples from the Community Garden’s Heritage Orchard
-
-
A motley crew of apples
-
-
This amazing apple was not much to look at but when I cut it open…PINK!
-
-
Cooking the apples to make one delicious sauce
-
-
The final product – Fallen Applesauce
Fallen Applesauce Recipe
- 1 crate fallen apples
- apple cider
- water
- 1-2 cups sugar (many of my apples were sweet, so I used less than a cup of sugar. Plus I like it to taste true to the apples).
- cinnamon sticks, ground cloves, ground nutmeg
Directions:
- Wash, core and peel the apples (cut out worms or any bruising) only use what you would eat fresh. No need to peel the apples!
- Cook the apples, sugar, cinnamon sticks and spices slowly in a cup of cider and a cup of water. Add more liquid, sugar and/or spices as you cook to get the flavour and consistency you like. Personal taste is the only rule here!
- When apples are tender, remove cinnamon sticks and set aside. Blend apples with an immersion blender until smooth. You can add the cinnamon back in now if you’d like.
- Continue to add liquid and cook the apples, until you get the consistency and flavour you like.
- Ladle into sterile jars leaving 1/4 inch of headspace.
- Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes (adjust for altitude if necessary). The applesauce can also be frozen if you prefer.
September 18 2009 | Canning and Community Garden and Growing Food and Harvest and Photography and Recipes | No Comments »
Wash & remove thick stems from a bunch of kale. Drizzle with 1 tbsp of olive oil & sprinkle lightly w/Kosher salt. Bake @ 350 degrees for 10 min until crispy.
July 13 2009 | Photography and Recipes | 4 Comments »
Pork Marinade
½ cup cranberry or blueberry or cherry juice
1 tbsp lime juice
2 tbsp soy sauce
3/4 pound pork tenderloin
Salt and pepper
Mix first 3 ingredients in a bowl and marinade tenderloin for a minimum of 15 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, then grill pork off heat on BBQ for 10-15 mins. Keep basting with marinade as it cooks. Allow to rest for 5 minutes then serve it sliced widthwise ½” thick.
Cherry Reduction
1/2 pound dark sweet cherries, pitted and chopped (about 1 cup)
1 tsp fresh lime juice
2 tbsp finely chopped red onion
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh coriander
2 tbsp maple syrup
2 tbsp sweet wine (I used rhubarb wine)
Process all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until fine. Transfer to a skillet and bring to a boil on med-high heat, stirring constantly. Reduce to medium and continue stirring as the sauce thickens and reduces by about half the original volume, about 8 minutes. Spoon finished reduction over pork tenderloin to serve.
Sautéed Fennel
2 fennel bulbs
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Chop fennel bulbs by slicing the bulb crosswise starting at one corner and continue to create ¼” thick pieces. Discard the stalk and foliage. Warm olive oil in a skillet on med-high heat. Sautee fennel until slightly soft, about 3-5 minutes. Do not overcook. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.
Spinach Chive Toast
Handful of chives
Handful of spinach
Large knob of butter (about ¼ cup)
Dollop of olive oil.
Mix all ingredients in a food processor until butter is completely mixed, and spread on hot toast. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
June 14 2009 | Recipes | No Comments »
