Roasted Figs with Crispy Prosciutto and Blue Cheese

It's interesting to watch trends in food. I'm not talking about big ones...like the proliferation of tapas/small plates and the exploration that some chefs are doing with more "scientific" preparations. I like seeing what new ingredients and ingredient combinations rear their heads. Last summer I ripped out several recipes for zucchini "carpaccio"--very thinly sliced raw zucchini with a variety of toppings.

More recently, I've started to see recipes with various combinations of roasted figs, prosciutto and cheese--either blue cheese or Parmesan. They got my mouth watering. So, when Andrea Immer Robinson provided a recipe as a pairing with one of her A-List wine shipments I thought I would try it.

It was a wonderful collision of flavors: richly sweet figs, funkily salty blue cheese, and crispy prosciutto--an elegant riff on the bacon we're more used to. The recipe below was delicious, but could be even easier. Grab a jar of fig preserves (heat if you'd like to), spread on some flatbread and sprinkle the blue cheese and prosciutto pieces on top. Come to think of it, it would probably be good with plain ol' non-crispy prosciutto as well. On small crackers of some sort, it would make an elegant canape for your upcoming holiday parties.

Roasted Figs with Crispy Prosciutto and Blue Cheese
from Andrea Immer Robinson
Serves four.

6 firm-ripe figs, quartered
2-3 ounces prosciutto slices
2 ounces blue cheese (I used Maytag), crumbled
Freshly ground black pepper
Flatbread or cooked pizza crust

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Oil two baking sheets or spray with nonstick spray. Arrange the figs on one baking sheets and lay the prosciutto slices on the other. Place both pans in the oven and bake until the figs are tender (about 20 minutes depending on the firmness of the figs) and the prosciutto slices are crisp and brittle (about 15 minutes). Watch both pans carefully and remove before over-cooking.

When the prosciutto slices are done, remove then to paper towels to drain and cool.

If serving as a starter or "salad" (or even as a cheese course before dinner), place the roasted figs on serving plates and cool slightly. Or spoon onto flatbread or crackers. Sprinkle with cheese and season with black pepper. Crumble the prosciutto slices on top. And enjoy.

Wine Pairing:
The wine Andrea sent with this one was a South African red--2003 Simonsig Pinotage, Stellenbosch. Figgy and tarry with a touch of pepper, it was a perfect match for this recipe...and the take-out lasagna we had afterwards. At $30, it's worth looking for.

By the way, I want to again encourage you to sign up for Andrea's A-List. The wines and recipes are always wonderful, and you have the chance to explore wines you'd likely never otherwise taste. Plus you get the bonus of Andrea's wonderful, NON-overblown descriptors. For example, she described the Pinotage as having a Band-Aids and Mercurochrome nose. Know what? She's right!