Baked Figs in Balsamic and Maple Syrup

Birds flyin’ high you know how I feel
Sun in the sky you know how I feel
Breeze driftin’ on by you know how I feel
Its a new dawn, its a new day, its a new life for me
Yeah, its a new dawn its a new day its a new life for me ooooooooh
AND I’M FEELING GOOD

Tuesday is a funny day. It’s a non-day. It’s too far away from the weekend to be exciting and yet the memories of the weekend just gone linger. So I’m reversing the feelings I’ve had about Tuesday and renaming it ‘Terrific Tuesday’. The ability to come up with such a cheesy title for today came from the fact that when Nina Simone sings her heart out on the radio in the morning the WHOLE WORLD becomes terrific.

Blame Nina because I am FEELING GOOD!

Figs are at their glorious best right now and there are so many different ways to eat this beautiful fruit. Last week I was having a day experimenting in the kitchen and I decided to play about with roasting some figs.

Pre-heat the oven to 180c / 350f
Click here for my weight & cooking conversion chart if you are not cooking in the UK
Slice across the top of the fig and push the flesh out slightly. As you would with a baked potato.
Place the figs on to a baking tray and drizzle liberally with maple syrup
Spoon a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar in to the middle of each fig. Some of the vinegar will pour out and in to the tray. Before placing in to the oven collect some of the vinegar from the tray and repeat the process, spooning it in to the middle of the figs.
Bake in the oven for ten to fifteen minutes. Removing the figs from the oven once to spoon the vinegar & maple syrup in to the middle of the figs once again.
This is why you don’t want the oven too hot as you do not want the syrup and the vinegar to burn. You want it to reduce and sweeten in the oven.

I served my figs with rocket leaves and Pork Belly. The different flavors worked magnificently together. You must try them.

I used the maple syrup and balsamic from the baking tray to dress the salad and the pork. Only a small amount was needed as the intensity of the flavours go a very long way.