When figs are in season, apart from eating it as is, there is no simpler way to enjoy them than to quarter the figs down almost to its base, pucker them up, dollop with ricotta and embellish with just a little pepper, honey, extra virgin olive oil and lemon zest. There, I have just given you the entire recipe. Well, almost. Enjoy!

Figs And Peppered Ricotta

Prep: 10 minutes 
Cook: –
Inactive: –
Level: Easy
Serves: ~2 as a starter on a bed of mesclun or 4 as part of a meze.
Oven Temperature: –
Can recipe be doubled? Yes
Make ahead? Only the salad dressing can be made ahead if you are serving it as a starter for 2.

Ingredients

4 Figs
4 Tablespoons ricotta
2 teaspoons honey
Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest OR grate the lemon zest directly over the figs
Salt and black pepper to taste
If serving as a starter for 2 on a bed of mesclun you need:
2 cups of mesclun
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 to 1 teaspoon caster sugar*
pinch of pepper and salt
* The amount of sugar you use depends on how sharp the balsamic vinegar tastes. You want the salad dressing to be slightly on the sweet side. Don’t skip. 

Method

1. Quarter the figs almost down to its base. Use your two thumbs and forefingers to pinch and push the base of the figs upwards so that they are thrust upwards to open up like a blossom.
2. Dollop 2 Tablespoons of ricotta into each cavity. Plate them.
3. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon honey over each mound of ricotta.
4. Lightly drizzle extra virgin olive oil over each fig.
5. Divide the 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest and sprinkle over each mound of ricotta. Serve as part of a meze.
6. If serving as a starter for 2 on a bed of mesclun you need to:
In a large bowl, mix the extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, caster sugar, salt and pepper well to get a salad dressing. Add the mesclun into the salad dressing and toss to coat. Divide into 2 portions and plate the dressed mesclun. Place 2 prepared figs over the salad. Eat.

Tips

So you do not like figs. No problem. Use peaches or nectarines instead


The salad dressing is also very good drizzled over Beef Kefta (meatballs), a recipe that I will share with you soon.

WHAT’S COMING UP NEXT?

Hummus with Spiced Up Angus Beef. The hummus is very creamy and smooth, the angus beef is tender. It is a great combination!

To recap, this post is part of my series on Meze, A Selection of Wonderful Little Bites.  With the festive season almost upon us, I thought it would be useful to post some pre-dinner bites for your upcoming parties. Here is a picture of my recent meze party. A main course was not served and there was really no need for it. There was enough of a delicious array of food to choose from and good home baked bread too.

To find out the names of and the recipes for the meze I served, please refer to the picture below.