Figs Are Here!

I've been doing cooking demos at a few farmers' markets in the area lately, and the offering has been, well, little boring, to be honest.  I was feeling somewhat defeated last weekend when two of the veggies I intended to be the "star" of two different recipes were no longer available - fava beans and asparagus.  Our weather has been so wack-a-doo that it's hard to depend on anything besides kale, salad greens and onions.

So I'm walking around feeling uninspired.  Then I saw the arrival of summer squash and got a quick little pick-me-up.  The zucchini and caserta squash would make nice substitutes for the fava beans and asparagus as it turned out.  But I got a kind of school girl silliness when I spied....figs.

Finally, something truly new and interesting!  I'm sure I've mentioned it before, I like to eat as seasonally as I can.  So I've waited for figs for a looong time.  And I knew just what I wanted to do with them: fig tartlets and  fig and arugula pizza.  No, not on the same night!  But actually, that's not a terrible idea.

So here are my non-recipe recipes for my two favorite fig dishes....

Fig Tartlets Cut a sheet of puff pastry into equal squares, separate, place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and bake according to package instructions.  Remove from oven and cut each one in half separating top from bottom.  Place a tablespoon of goat cheese on the bottom, top with sliced figs and some arugula that you've tossed with lemon juice.  Place the top puff pastry piece and dig in!

Arugula and Fig Pizza
This is essentially the same deal as the tartlet, but on a Boboli bread shell.  Drizzle a little olive oil onto the bread shell, top with goat cheese and fig slices.  Cook 8-10 minutes according to package, remove from oven and top with arugula that has been tossed with lemon juice.  Add a little red pepper flakes if you like it a little spicy, like I do.

According to one of the farmers I talked to this past weekend, they won't be around for long, so go out this week and grab a bunch. 

What do they do for me?

Figs contain more fiber that any other fruit, so they will keep you satisfied and feeling full.

They help keep your blood sugar regulated.

They are a natural laxative.

They help control blood pressure.

They protect your skeletal system.

Hello Fava Bean

My sister took me to a book signing for Marie Simmons at Greens in the city.  Annie Somerville interpreted a few dishes from Annie's new vegetarian cookbook, Fast and Fresh Vegetarian.  One of the dishes was a creamy polenta with fava beans, English peas, and I forget what else - but it was fabulous!! I don't think I'd ever had a fava bean before and certainly had never cooked them ...Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal Lecter had made me completely uninterested.  When my sister said that she's never cooked them because "they're too much work," I heard a triple dog dare.

I was doing a cooking demo at the Sebastopol farmers' market the next weekend, so I asked one of the farmers that had fava beans, "I heard these are hard to deal with?"  He said, "yes."  Dang, could my sister be right?

Not giving up yet (sibling rivalry is great, isn't it?!), I approached another farmer later that week in Corte Madera.  When I said the same, "I hear these are hard to deal with," he quickly said "no."  And then he explained to me  that all I had to do was blanch them for a few minutes and the skins will easily break open and out comes the bean. Maybe late in the season the bean inside has a bit more coating to it and you would have to peel that off, but still, that doesn't seem like a lot of work to me.

I bought a bunch of beans and went home wondering what the heck to do with them.  Got to love Google.  After looking at a ton of recipes  (well, 4 or 5 is about my limit, really) I found an idea for a dip/spread and made a few adjustments to make my new Springtime friend....Fava Bean & Arugula Spread on Watermelon Radish:

By the way, watermelon radishes were new to me, too....but oh, how I love them .  Sooo pretty.

Oh yeah, and I win the triple dog dare.

Fava Bean & Arugula Spread                                                                             Makes 1 cup

1 pound fava beans

1 cup chopped arugula, divided

2 ounces goat cheese

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

Zest and juice from one lemon

¼ teaspoon salt

Pinch cayenne

¼ cup chopped radish

·         Bring a large pot of water to boil and add fava beans.

·         Cook 3 minutes, then plunge into a bowl of ice water to stop cooking.

·         Shell the beans and place in a food processor along with ½ cup arugula, goat cheese, dill, lemon juice & zest, salt and cayenne.  Blend until smooth paste forms.

·         Place mixture in a bowl and fold in remaining ½ cup of arugula and chopped radishes.

·         Serve on radish slices. (crostini works, too, but I always try to keep it veg-based)