FIGS, FIGS, FIGS

So what is it about figs that has everybody atwitter....Before I left the United States this month, I had a phone call from my son in Atlanta....his fig crop was exceptional....exceptionally prolific!  And then, I was facebooking with my friend, Dorette Snover of C'est si Bon in Chapel Hill.  She, too, was covered up with figs.  Now I am in Provence and I am greeted by tubs of figs.  Nous crulons sous les figues! Perhaps the excitement is because it is one of the few truly seasonal fruits.  We know we won't have them any other time of the year plus we really don't see that many in the grocery stores.....they are a farmer's market purchase or a tree in your back yard. 

So Dorette and I decided to both blog about our figs this week. See her at www.plantingcabbages.com

 

The plump, purple variety shown here is Soliès-Pont, named for a village here in the Departement du Var.  Sollies Pont is also home of the Fete de la Figue, an August festival that celebrates this ancient fruit.  This is the fig that I have come to know and love.  In the American South, it is mostly the small brown turkey fig.....to me, a different fruit that is good in its own way, but nothing like the purple fig of Provence. 

So what is a girl to do with so many figs.....Well, you might see me sneaking out the back door where just steps away I can feast to my heart's content.  But Xavier might have other ideas....there are jars of fig confiture dancing in his head.....and I mean lots of jars.  So far this year, the count is 220!  Read on for recipes and lots of uses for everything fig......Then don't miss the end......where there is No Fig Leaf for Apollo!

So here is Xavier's recipe for the most popular confiture we put on the table for our groups.  It is divine on a croissant or in your breakfast yogurt.

But not just for breakfast, we make a Shallot Fig  Confit to use with Pan Seared Magrets (duck breasts) or MJ will use it as a topping for the Duck Rillettes on Crostinis at cocktail hour.  To make the confit: carmelize shallots, deglaze with a light red wine vinegar and add some fig confiture. Reduce. Season with salt. Taste for sweet/sour balance & adjust. If you have no duck rillettes, then use shredded barbecue.

FIG CONFITURE

1 KILO (2.2 lbs) FRESH PURPLE FIGS,  QUARTERED (or halved in small)

1 HEAPING TBS. ZEST DE CITRON CONFIT (below)

700 GRAMS RAW SUGAR (1 1/2 lbs)*

JUICE OF ½ LEMON

  (Photo is 7-8 kilos)

In a large pot, combine figs, citron confit, and 1/2 cup water and 2 pinches salt.  Bring to a simmer.  Slowly cook down the figs. Stir often. They will melt down and skins will soften. This takes about 15-20 minutes.  Add sugar.  Increase heat to fast boil. Cook 15-20 minutes stirring constantly. About 5 minutes before end, add juice of ½ lemon. Reduce heat.  

Remove from heat.  Continue to stir to dissipate heat….about 3-4 minutes. Fill jars to top.  If reusing old jars, invert jars while cooling.  Lids will reseal.

NOTES: When going from sweet and more pulpy fruit such as pears, figs, apricots to more acidic watery fruits such as strawberry, raspberry, you add more sugar to the latter (750-800 gms per kilo) 

 

Short fast cooking time after sugar is added will give you the best flavor.  Long cooking time destroys the color and flavor.

*Raw sugar is the free flowing sugar that is less processed than white sugar.  I buy the Florida Crystals that comes in a plastic jug.  It is not turbinado sugar....too coarse.

Now for the 'piece de resistance' of the Fig Confiture. ....

ZESTES DE CITRON CONFITS

 

10 LEMONS (to yield 1 ½ cups zest weighing .140 kg [5 oz])

1 ½ CUPS RAW SUGAR

Peel lemons and julienne into ‘needle’ size pieces …tiny width and about ½ inch long. In 2-quart saucepan, cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, Blanch, strain and rinse.  Return to pan and just cover with water  (there should be enough so that the zest floats).  Add the juice of 1 ½ lemons and pinch of salt.  Simmer very slowly for 20 minutes.  Water will be almost gone. Add juice from other half of lemon then level with 1 1/2 cups raw sugar.  Cook very SLOWLY for 15-20 minutes.  Add about 2 tablespoons more water if zest is not tender at this time*.  Do this several times…..the color becomes somewhat brownish.  The syrup is obviously thicker and the zest is very transparent and crystalline-like.  It is done when color of zest is correct…..cooked, tender and transparent.

If the lemon peel is tough, it is because it was not cooked enough with the water.

*TIP: If you cook the zest with the sugar too long, the sugar could caramelize, therefore you need to add more water to prevent caramelization.

NOTE:  You can collect your zest over a period of time (freeze it).  As fig season approaches, every time a lemon is used, the zest is removed first, julienned, and put in a small jar in the freezer until there is enough to make the confit.  Did someone say this is labor intensive?  Great for honing your knife skills too.  

I might also call it 'heaven on a spoon'....

For the gardener....

Xavier is very much the gardener and has the patience of a saint (for some things!).  So at the end of last summer, I saw him collecting soil on a plastic bag.  What's up?  He walked over to the tree and wrapped the bag around the limb surrounding a joint with the soil....winter came, spring came, summer came. Then I am in the States for 4 weeks only and he goes to the next step without me.  Cut the branch, removed the plastic....Voila, lots of roots.....potted it for his brother.  And not one damn photo!! I WILL take a picture the next time we go to his brother's!

This just speaks to the fact that fig trees are hardy, fairly easy to propagate. We see so many in the villages growing from tiny cracks in stone walls and fortifications ...seeds left there by a petite oiseaux (bird)....

If you are indeed interested in all the different varieties of figs, check out this website.  It is an excellent source of information about all things fig!

Fig Leaves are very helpful when building a simple food tray
 .

and finally, from Nice Matin, we unravel why there is

No Fig Leaf for Apollo!

 This larger than life statue in Nice has generated much controversy. It was banned in the 70's from its prominent position on Place Massena because some people were offended by his endowment.  In June of this year, it was re-erected on Place Massena sans fig leaf in the location where it was originally intended.

Click here to read the complete story and see Apollo's final resting place. 

Don't forget to visit Dorette's blog! 

 

A Favorite Garden

Knowing that I visit many places in the South of France every week, people always ask "What is your favorite?"  I never have an answer as every week is different....different people, different weather, different season, etc. BUT now, I believe I have an exception.  The Ephrussi de Rothchild villa and gardens is definitely a favorite in the springtime.  The house with many of Mme Rothchild's possessions has everything from porcelain, to clothing, to art, to antiques....the villa exudes her love of 18th century France. Then there are the 9 magnificent gardens that are changing every week.   Beatrice Rothchild took 7 years to build this estate on the narrowest part of Cap Ferrat where she would have a view of the bay of Villefranche sur Mer on one side and the Mediterranean Sea on the other.  Views are magnificent.  She did indeed accomplished her goal of feeling like she was on a cruise ship.  This too was enhanced by the fact that she asked her gardeners to dress as sailors. ...yes, she was a bit eccentric.  Married at the age of 19, separated a couple of years later, never to remarry, she bequeathed Villa Ephrussi de Rothchild to the Academie des Beaux-Arts de l'Institut de France who completed the gardens and have maintained them and the villa ever since. To see a complete slideshow of the villa and gardens, click here

Garden Wonders

This spider takes on the color of its surroundings...here it has taken up residence on a wild garlic blossom. Isn't it magnificent? And that is coming from a person who screams when she sees a spider. I took dozens of pics!

On this particular day, the butterflies were all over the wild lilac in the garden. Captured this one with its wings opened and it appears that she has not shed all her cocoon.....

ENJOY!

Flowers of Spring

The poppy fields have been extraordinary...more plentiful and brilliant than ever. There are fields of poppies...then there are poppies falling over stone walls and even a lone ranger or two in the middle of a rocky path. They grow everywhere. We were such in search of them last year but never had the vistas that there have been in '07. Am taking lots of photos for my artist friends.

So many things are blooming. Here at Xavier's, he allows the wildflowers to progress through the Spring and mows only when they are spent.....first the tiny yellow flowers that blanket the yard....then come the bluets (though not the one we have), followed by the poppies and now the wild verbena (perennial verbena at home) with a yellow daisy......Nature sure does have alot to offer.

Last week, we made the trip to Abbaye de Senanque where the monks grow lavender and lavandin.....The monks have done an amazing amount of work since my last visit in September. The fields are gorgeous and I can't wait to return there in June when the lavender blossoms will be bursting forth......a field of purple. Lavender fields are everywhere......Did you know that it takes 100 kilos of blossoms (and think how light they are) to produce 1 liter of lavender essence! Below is the picture from the entrance of Senanque. I will take the same picture with the lavender in bloom in June.

SEASONAL FARE

It is always an adventure finding out upon arrival what is blooming, what trees have fruit, what is in the garden. Today was no exception. Look at these luscious artichokes...les petit violet de Provence. I have a picture from my files that shows a larger variety of an artichoke that has been allowed to go to flower...that flower is the choke that we remove before eating.

Walk into the kitchen this morning and there are two big containers of fresh strawberries...and not just any strawberries. These are the berries from Carpentras which is known for these luscious gems. These berries are about the size of the end of my ring finger and really taste and smell like strawberries. They have not been hybridized to the point of being huge with no flavor. This is what strawberries are supposed to be. Rarely, do we find them in the States. It hasn't been long since my arrival and between Xavier and myself (mostly me), the baskets are empty. I transferred some to a dish for photgraphing....maybe you can catch a whiff.....YUM..



Now, on tap for tonight's dinner are white asparagus....Having had many last Spring when I was here, I am looking forward to the evening repas (actually, I look forward to it every night if the truth be known). But, I have never liked those that I purchase in the grocery stores at home. Maybe I don't do something right but they are always tough and bitter for me. These are tender and succulent....and even more so with Xavier's vinaigrette.

I was looking forward to picking the cherries from the tree at my house in a couple of weeks....the usual time for them to be ready, but Xavier tells me that Spring came early.........and between that and a frost at an inopportune time, there are few cherries to be had....It seems to be the same scenario that was played out in North Carolina this year.