Fig Heaven: 70 Recipes for the World's Most Luscious Fruit
Most Americans recognize figs only from the thick, sweet, gummy filling of mass-produced cookies. But anyone who has relished the honeyed interior of a perfectly ripe fresh fig understands why the ancients so prized this fruit. Nowadays green and black fresh figs appear seasonally in supermarkets. Simmons recognizes that the prime time for fresh figs is brief, so her book includes recipes for both fresh and dried varieties in her compilation of fig recipes. Appetizer ideas include the ubiquitous figs with prosciutto, but then go beyond that to such savories as crostini with fig jam and goat cheese, and bacon-wrapped figs first poached in wine. In main dishes, figs serve as a sweet note in spicy curries or as star of a very contemporary salsa. Few desserts surpass the elegant spectacle of a fresh fig tart, the glazed split fruits sparkling like jewels within a sea of pastry cream. And for those nostalgic for the commercial stuffed cookie, Simmons explains how to make superlative Fig Newtons at home. Color illustrations contribute both beauty and utility.Mark KnoblauchCopyright &#169; American Library Association. All rights reserved