"figs" news and stories

One person's haul from Food Fête. Photo: craigemorsels/Flickr

If New York City's annual Fancy Food Show is a hurricane of food-related items, occupying three vast floors of the sprawling Javits Center, then the tiny, cramped Food Fête is its spin-off tornado.

Hosted in a smaller space and likewise designed to get food writers and editors interested in new and interesting culinary products, the Fête was an interesting and slightly chaotic affair. High-end eats were hawked right up alongside lower-end food, from a very tasty slice of grass-fed steak to a Kikkoman "umami" demonstration in which we were subjected to a taste-off between a regular chocolate and one containing soy sauce -- a rather palate-numbing experience, that.

Former Top Cheffer Stephanie Izard was there with Lucini, the spicy olive oil she endorses, which she had drizzled on a very tasty panzanella. She told us she hadn't had a chance to roam the halls yet. But we had, and our faves are after the jump.

Photo: Hopkinsii/Flickr

Few fruits burst with the luscious, velvety sweetness of a ripe fig; there's a reason why the ancient Romans regarded them as sacred. To know how it feels to bite through a fig's smooth skin into the plush flesh underneath is to know that luxury is often synonymous with simplicity. This photo, snapped by Hopkinsii at Flickr, captures them at their plump, unassuming best, their cool green skin giving little hint of the earthy delights hidden just beneath the surface.

[Via Flickr]

While I was in California last week, I made a stop at the Santa Monica Farmers' Market. I was there mostly just to gawk, as I was getting on a plane later in the day. I did make a couple of small purchases, including a bag of sun dried tomatoes (more on those soon, as they may just be one of the best things I've ever tasted), a scant pound of local grapes and a basket of figs, which I ate while waiting for my flight. The figs were at the point of ripeness where they just beg to be eaten and I was happy to comply.

I prefer eating figs raw, mostly because I never have a enough of them around to satisfy my hunger for them and still use them in cooking or baking. However, if I happened to have a surplus of figs, I think I'd make these financiers. Check out the recipe here.

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Eric Asimov discusses the new breed of lighter, subtler Napa Valley Cabernets.

Applebee's moves beyond the riblet in an effort to save itself from Bennigan's fate.

The Hamptons get real Mexican-style tacos. Yay?

The Minimalist makes tomato jam.

Recipes for icy summer mocktails. And not just virgin daiquiris - think homemade tonic with lavender, chamomile, fresh herbs and lime juice.

Meet the raspberry fig.

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In ancient Greece, figs were eaten during frenzied sexual rituals. That fact alone should be enough to get some figs on the Valentine's Day menu!

However, the reason figs are associated with aphrodisiacs is that a fresh fig, when cut open, looks like (not too sound too clinical or anything) a certain part of the female reproductive system. Who wouldn't think of fertility when seeing all those tiny little seeds?!?!

Fresh figs are seasonal, and more than likely, not available during Valentine's day, but dried figs are available year round.