Roasted Figs with Blue Cheese and Honey

I was at my favorite local grocery store Marianos recently and they were handing out a sample of roasted figs with gorgonzola cheese melted on it. I had not had a roasted fig before but gave it a reluctant try..delicious!  Warm and chewy and melted in my mouth.

Marianos sells bushels of figs this time of year so I decided that I had to try an appetizer recipe using them.  I did not know how to pick out figs but found this article from the LA Times.  The article said that you want the fig to be soft and ripe but not smashed. A few tears in the skin will be just fine, though. Real fig lovers say to look for a drip of moisture in the little hole at the bottom of the fruit. Smell is important, too. There shouldn’t be any whiff of fermentation.  So I was off to pick out some fresh figs for the first time…I always love learning something new about a food.

While the gorgonzola was delicious, I decided to try blue cheese which was just as good, especially drizzled with honey.

This is the perfect fall appetizer: easy and beautiful to look at.

Wash and stem each fig and place inside up on a baking sheet..

Drizzle each fig with honey and roast for 10 minutes then remove from oven and add blue cheese crumbles and continue roasting until cheese melts.

Remove from the oven and plate…looks beautiful and delicious!

Roasted Figs With Blue Cheese And Honey

Cook time: Approximately 15 minutes

Serves 1-2 people as an appetizer

Ingredients

4 figs, halved

2 Tbs blue cheese, crumbled

Honey

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Wash and stem the figs. Arrange on baking sheet with inside of fig facing up.
3. Drizzle each fig with honey and roast for 10 minutes.
4. Remove from oven and top with a few blue cheese crumbles per fig.
5. Put back into the oven for another 2-3 minutes, or until cheese begins to soften.
6. Let cool for 7-10 minutes.  Serve with crackers if desired.

Julia’s Tips: 

• If you are not a blue cheese fan then try gorgonzola cheese.
• As you will see in the pictures I did not remove the stems from the figs, but in hindsight I should have, so I modified this recipe to do that.

I really love fresh figs now and can’t wait to try this recipe out for my next get together.

Adapted from Healthy, Delicious.