Fruits of the Fall: 'Tis the Season to Get Figgy...

The month of September brings us lots of exciting seasonal fruits, so here are some juicy recipes starring a few of the best. Don’t forget that fruits in season are at their tastiest, less expensive, help to support your local economy and cut down on air-miles needed to transport your food. Try them before they’re gone for winter!

First up is my favourite, figs! With availability limited to only a few months of the year, they feel like such a treat when they arrive. Don’t know what to do with them? Aside from their fantastic flavour, what I love most about figs is their versatility. There aren’t many foods that are at home as a starter, within a main course or as a dessert (not to mention the cheese board!).

I was lucky enough to pick some from a friend’s fig tree. With guests coming over for dinner, I decided to whip them up as this simple but delicious starter - Figs wrapped in Prosciutto Ham:

1.       Chop off the stalk at the top if hard, cut a cross shape no more than half way down the fruit, then squeeze the bottom with your fingers so it fans out like petals on a flower. This will reveal their vibrant colour and pattern inside, yum!

2.      Wrap a thin slice of prosciutto ham carefully around the fig. Loosely scrunch up a further small piece and stuff it gently into the centre of the fruit.

3.      Finally, drizzle with honey before popping them in the oven at 180⁰C for 10 minutes until the ham becomes crispy. The figs I had were so ripe and sweet, that I actually skipped the honey.

4.      Serve them on a bed of mild-tasting leaves, dressed with a sweet balsamic glaze, for a ridiculously quick and easy starter that looks so impressive! These are also great served on a cheeseboard, as a quirky alternative to grapes.

For a different starter, this time suitable for vegetarians, try my Fig Boats:

1.      Slice the figs in half lengthways. Shell out the flesh, being careful not to make a hole in the skin. Keep the skins to one side.

2.      Chop the fig flesh into small pieces, and combine with some crème fraiche, crumbled stilton and crushed walnuts. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper.

3.      Fill the fig skins with the mixture. Bake in the oven for 5-10 minutes at 180⁰C until warmed through. Delicious!

Next up is the blackberry. I can’t step outside at the moment without seeing someone picking them off the hedgerows! After filling a basket load myself, and with apples from the orchard overflowing in my fruit bowl, I decided to put them to use with a Blackberry and Apple Crumble. I hate fussing around with desserts, but the only time-consuming part here is prepping the apples (not so laborious when ‘multi-tasking’ with the latest episode of Hollyoaks). The rest is easy:

Blackberry and Apple Mixture

1.      Peel and core the apples before chopping into small chunks.

2.      Pop them in a pan with half a cup of water and some granulated sugar (approx. 50g per dozen apples). Cook on a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the apples soften and the edges start to go mushy.

3.      Whilst they’re cooking, make your crumble topping. Mix together 150g plain flour, 50g granulated sugar and 75g cubed salted butter until it resembles fine breadcrumbs.

4.      Take the apples off the heat and gently stir in as many blackberries as you like. Place the fruit mixture in a baking dish, then top evenly with the crumble.

5.      Cook for 25-30 minutes at 180⁰C until the fruit juices are bubbling around the edge. Perfect served with vanilla ice cream.

This fruit mixture can also be used to make a Fruit Tart instead. Simply line a greased tart dish with some shortcrust pastry (Tight for time? Cheat and buy ready rolled…shhh). Fill with the fruit mixture, after letting it cool. Thinly slice a few apples and arrange to make a pretty pattern on top. Brush with some melted butter, sprinkle with sugar and bake for 45 minutes at 180⁰C. Et voila, another stylish dish with little effort.

And there you have it, hedgerow heaven! Try your hand at these easy recipes using seasonal fruits, or make up some of your own.

Look out for my oriental inspired post next week!