17 Sep Fig and Prosciutto Salad

For the first time in my life I have a fig tree in my backyard. Its been a revelation for me in many ways. It is so immensely satisfying to have such an abundant source of delicious food waiting for me outside my door.  When I first saw the tree I wished for more figs than I knew what to do with, and this July the tree delivered! I could hardly pick all of the ripe figs that were waiting for me in all of their plump and delicious glory. The tree bears little green figs that get a touch purple. They are small and delicious bursts of sweetness and earth.

When the tree was producing my kids and I started spending a lot of time out at the fig tree picking – my youngest enjoying the dirt and the low figs, my daughter climbing the low branches and tracking down dropped figs for the dogs to eat. Since the kids were content I got to enjoy the age-old activity of harvesting food. We would stay out for hours piling fruit into bowls. All of the fruit within my reach was picked first, and then we would get creative with how to get the higher fruit. I can easily conjure the feel of the large fig leaves against my skin and the itch of the inevitable mosquito bites that followed our fruit picking adventures. For me, these sensations are now akin to the meditative glory of picking fruit and the sweet and complex pops of deliciousness that follow.

This salad is one of the many fig creations that followed having (blessedly) more figs than I knew what to do with. The sweet complexity of the figs take this savory salad to the next level. I used a tangy tahini dressing, but a regular or fruit infused balsamic would also be super tasty. This salad is as delicious as it is beautiful thanks to these lovely morsels we find abundant only once a year.