This is fig week in Napa Valley, where I live. Seems like everyone’s backyard crop matures at once. Ripe figs wait for no one. Use ’em or lose ’em. Poking around online for inspiration, I stumbled on an appealing Greek recipe that I would be making for dinner guests if only we could have dinner guests. Oh, well. More for me. Roasted figs, feta, honey, thyme, lemon, sesame seeds—plus my secret ingredient. Soooo good.
My starting point was a recipe from Marilena’s Kitchen, the blog of Marilena Leavitt, a Greek-born cooking teacher in Northern Virginia. As cooks do, I tweaked it. She uses Grand Marnier. I wanted to use ouzo but couldn’t find any in our overstuffed liquor cabinet (how could that be?) so I substituted Pastis. Any anise-flavored spirit, like Pernod, Ricard or raki, would do.
Baking the figs with honey, thyme and Pastis produces a luscious, syrupy, subtly anise-scented glaze. Cool the figs a bit, then spoon them on top of whole-grain toast or ciabatta with whipped feta. If you have enough figs, bake extra and enjoy them the next day with yogurt for breakfast.
Roasted Fig and Feta Toasts
Adapted from Marilena’s Kitchen. Serve as an appetizer or with an arugula salad.
2 teaspoons sesame seed
2 tablespoons ouzo, Pernod, Pastis or other anise-flavored spirit
2 teaspoons honey
½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, plus a few more for garnish
6 ripe figs, halved
¼ pound Greek, French or Israeli feta
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Greek yogurt, optional
Freshly ground black pepper
4 slices whole-grain or favorite sourdough bread
1 lemon
Preheat the oven to 425°F. Toast the sesame seed in a small dry skillet over medium heat, shaking often, until golden brown and fragrant. Let cool.
Put the ouzo and honey in a baking dish just large enough to hold the figs and stir until the honey dissolves. Add the thyme leaves and the figs, cut side up. Bake 10 minutes, then brush the figs with the pan juices and continue baking until the juices are reduced to a near-glaze, about 8 minutes longer. Set figs aside until just barely warm.
In a small food processor (or by hand), blend the feta and olive oil until smooth and creamy. Add a little more olive oil or a spoonful of Greek yogurt if necessary to create a smooth spread. Season with pepper.
Toast the bread lightly and let cool slightly. Top with the whipped feta, dividing it evenly, then with the figs and any syrupy glaze. With a Microplane, grate a little lemon zest over each toast, then sprinkle with sesame seeds and a few fresh thyme leaves. Serve immediately.
Serves 4