“Ok everyone: it’s time to glove up,” Kate announces.
“Errrr… glove up?” I ask. Gloving up is not an activity I usually associate with picking fruit.
“Yeah, the sap from the figs can make your skin really itchy if it gets on you,” Kate explains.
The kids and I have been invited for a special treat today – picking figs at a friend’s house.
Kate is my sister-in-law’s cousin. We’d met before at their annual Boxing Day family get-togethers but a few months ago my sister-in-law’s sister sent me a link to Kate’s blog, Gluten-Free for Lunch Boxes, created after Kate’s youngest daughter was diagnosed with coeliac disease.
When we caught up last Boxing Day we got chatting and Kate invited us to visit to pick figs at her house when they were in season. I’ve blogged about my love for figs before so I was thrilled to receive an email from her recently saying that her figs were ready.
Kate’s fig tree is maybe 30-40 years old and produces great quantities of fruit throughout February and March.
I had no idea figs produced so much sap when picked. The sap is milky white to start with but dries clear and becomes very sticky. If you try to separate two figs that have sap on them their delicate skins will tear off in patches.
We pick and pick and later, Kate packs a box of figs for us, about 1.5 kgs worth. What a treat!
(Photo taken on Instagram – follow me at @thehungryaustralian.)
The next morning I take the figs out of the refrigerator. They’re shiny with sap in patches.
The less ripe figs are pistachio green tinged with only a slight purpling while the perfectly ripe figs are deep purple in colour and crimson red inside.
Aren’t they beautiful?
We eat a big bowl of fresh figs for breakfast and they’re magnificent – fleshly, soft and richly honey flavoured.
I can’t wait to cook with them. Recipes coming soon!
Tell me, dear reader, do you like figs? If so, what’s your favourite way of eating them?
PS If you’re looking for a fig recipe now, why not try my Fig, Proscuitto and Pear Salad?
