Fig Goat Cheese Toasts Recipes

Steps:

• Place the orange zest and orange juice in a medium (10-inch) heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven, such as Le Creuset. Add the sugar, vanilla bean, and figs to the pot. Cover and bring to a full boil over medium heat. (Don't worry; it may look dry.) Stir the mixture and boil hard for 1 minute, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Lower the heat, and cook uncovered at a full simmer for 50 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. You want the little bubbles to be throughout the pot, not just at the edges. After 45 minutes, refrigerate a small amount of the liquid to see if it becomes syrupy. It should be like a soft fruit preserve. Keep cooking just until the liquid starts to gel when cold. If the liquid is too firm, add a little orange juice or water, cook for a minute, and test it again until it's right. Depending on how ripe the figs are, they will probably keep their shape, but it's fine if they don't. Discard the vanilla bean and serve or refrigerate.
• Before serving, toast or grill the bread and spread with goat cheese. Spoon the fig preserves on, then the grated orange zest if using, and serve.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Arrange the bread slices on 2 heavy large baking sheets. Brush olive oil over the bread slices. Bake until the crostini are pale golden and crisp, about 15 minutes.
• Blend the goat cheese and cream cheese in a food processor until smooth and creamy. Add the parsley, thyme, and lemon peel. Using the on/off button, pulse just to blend. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Spread the cheese mixture over the crostini. Sprinkle with the olives, chives, and more pepper. Arrange the toasts on a platter and serve.
• Do-Ahead Tip: The crostini and cheese mixture can each be prepared 2 days ahead. Store the crostini in an airtight container at room temperature. Cover and refrigerate the cheese mixture. Let the cheese mixture stand at room temperature for 1 hour to soften slightly before spreading over the crostini.

Steps:

• Toast the bread in a toaster and while it is still warm, spread the fig spread on each slice to cover it entirely. Place the cheese in a bowl and heat in the microwave for 30 to 45 seconds, until it's creamy and spreadable. Spread a layer of the cheese on the fig spread, leaving the edges of the fig spread visible. Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. Cut each toast crosswise to make appetizers that will be easy to eat. Place a fig slice on each piece, top with a few microgreens, and drizzle lightly with the balsamic vinegar. Serve at room temperature.

Steps:

• Make savory fig jam:
• Cook shallot, thyme sprigs, and bay leaf in butter in a 1- to 1 1/2-quart heavy saucepan over moderately low heat, stirring, until shallot is softened, about 2 minutes. Add dried figs, Port, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil. Simmer, covered, until figs are soft, about 10 minutes. If there is still liquid in saucepan, remove lid and simmer, stirring, until most of liquid is evaporated, 3 to 4 minutes more. Discard bay leaf and thyme sprigs and transfer jam to a bowl. Cool, then stir in minced thyme and salt and pepper to taste.
• Make toasts while jam cools:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat to 350°F.
• Halve each baguette slice diagonally, then arrange on a baking sheet and brush tops lightly with oil. Bake until lightly toasted, about 7 minutes. Cool on baking sheet on a rack.
• Assemble crostini:
• Spread each toast with 1 teaspoon fig jam and top with about 1 1/2 teaspoons goat cheese and 2 pieces fresh fig.

Steps:

• Center a rack in the oven and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat an 8- to 9-inch loaf pan with baking spray (or butter the pan).
• Cut the goat cheese into 1/2-inch pieces. It's a sticky, messy job, so don't aim for perfection. Refrigerate the cheese until needed.
• In a small bowl, toss together the figs, parsley, rosemary and thyme; keep at hand.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Working in a medium bowl, whisk the eggs until blended, then whisk in the milk, oil and honey.
• Pour the wet ingredients over the flour mixture, and, using a sturdy spatula, stir until the dough is almost blended. You'll still see streaks of flour, and that's fine. Scatter the fig mixture over the dough, and then cover with the chilled bits of goat cheese. Grate the zest of the clementine or tangerine over the cheese. Using as few strokes as possible, stir everything together. Once again, it might not be perfect, and, once again, that's fine. Scrape the dough into the pan, and use the spatula to poke the dough into the corners and to even the bumpy top.
• Bake for 34 to 38 minutes or until the top is golden, the cake has started to pull away from the sides of the pan, and, most important, a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Unmold the cake onto a rack, turn it right side up and let it cool. You can serve the cake when it's slightly warm (it's not so easy to cut then, but it's delicious) or when it is at room temperature. Cut into thick slices. Wrapped well, the cake will keep for a day or two at room temperature.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut goat cheese into 6 thick slices. Line an 8-by 12-inch earthenware baking dish with fig leaves (if using). Arrange goat cheese in center of dish and surround with fig halves. Season lightly with salt and pepper, then sprinkle with thyme. Drizzle with olive oil.
• Bake uncovered for 15 minutes, until both cheese and figs are softened. Run under broiler for 1 minute to brown. Let cool slightly before serving.

Steps:

• Arrange the figs on a tray, cut-side up. Slice the goat's cheese into eight rounds, then cut each round in half.
• Gently push the goat's cheese pieces into the cut sides of the figs, then season with a little salt and pepper, drizzle with the honey and scatter with the pistachios and thyme.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to fan 160C/conventional 180C/gas 4. Unless the baking sheet is non stick, line it with foil, then brush the foil lightly with oil.
• Cut the figs into quarters, from the top almost to the base, and arrange on the foil. Slice the goat's cheese and arrange in the centre of the figs. Bake for 10-15 minutes until the cheese is melted and tinged brown.
• Meanwhile, whisk the dressing ingredients with some seasoning. Put a couple of good radicchio leaves on each serving plate. Remove the figs from the oven and place on the radicchio leaves. Scatter the walnuts on top. Drizzle with the dressing and serve warm or at room temperature.