Fig and Pecorino Crostini

A couple of weeks ago I made this appetizer for a dinner party.   Ordinarily I spend so much of my effort on the main course that I often feel like starters are an afterthought.  This time I planned ahead of time and found this recipe from Giada de Laurentiis.   It was a hit and may become my go-to starter in the future. 

Pecorino Romano with Apples and Fig Jam

Courtesy of Giada De Laurentiis, Food Network

(4-6 servings)

6 dried figs, halved

1/2 cup simple syrup*

2 tablespoons brandy

1/4 chopped toasted hazelnuts

24 baguette slices

Olive oil for drizzling

1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano 

1 large apple (Granny Smith or Braeburn), thinly sliced into 24 slices

1/4 pound chunk Pecorino Romano, for shaving 24 pieces

-- Preheat oven to 375F

-- Place a small saucepan over medium heat.  Add the figs, simple syrup, and brandy.  

-- Bring mixture to a simmer then turn off heat and let sit for 10 minutes.  

-- Place the fig mixture and hazelnuts in food processor and blend until pureed.  Then set aside. 

-- Place baguette slices on a heavy baking sheet.  Drizzle each slice with olive oil.

-- Top each slice with 1 teaspoon of grated Pecorino Romano cheese.
-- Bake until the cheese is melted and golden, about 7 minutes. 

-- Top each slice of toast with 2 teaspoons of fig jam, a slice of apple, and a slice of shaved Pecorino Romano.  

-- Transfer toasts to a serving platter and serve.  

*Simple Syrup

1/2 cup water

1 cup sugar

-- In a saucepan combine water and sugar over medium heat. 

-- Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 5 minutes, until the sugar has dissolved. 

-- Take pan off of heat and let cool.  Any extra cooled syrup can be saved in an airtight container in the refrigerator.  

Just a couple of notes:

-- I didn't bother to toast the hazelnuts:  I was too lazy.  I am sure that if I had, the flavor would have been even better, but I honestly have burned so many nuts in the past, that I always skip this step in recipes now.   The hazelnuts I used were so yummy that the jam came out lovely without toasting them.

-- Hazelnuts are also called "filberts", so try looking for them under either name at your grocery store.  

-- I suggest that you add only about 3/4 of the simple syrup to the food processor.  See how thick it comes out first.  It's a lot easier to make it thinner, if you need to, than to thicken it up again.  Also note that as the jam cools, it thickens up.  Remember, the consistency should be that of a jam.  

-- I used a Granny Smith apple; they're my favorite anyway, and just really lend themselves in both sweetness and crispness to this recipe.

This appetizer was so good that my guests gobbled up every single one of them.  I also made extra jam which I've been using on toast in the morning as well as on our pork chops the other night (I used it on my Figgy Pork recipe).   I think I might even make a batch of this at Christmas time, put it in a pretty jar, and use it as my hostess gift when attending holiday parties.  

Figgy Pork

My parents visited the wine country in Sonoma earlier this fall and brought me back a jar of dried fig compote from the girl & the fig.  I looove figs.  I've been saving this jar until I could find something really special for which to use it.  I didn't want to just spread it on bread like it was some pedestrian jelly.  I wanted to use it on something more exciting.  But after looking at it sitting in my pantry for two  months, I finally decided to just use it.  Since pork lends itself so well to sweet sauces, I decided to use the compote with pork chops.  I looked at a few different recipes for inspiration, and came up with the following.    I suspect you could tweak it a bunch of different ways and still come up with something equally tasty.  The key here was the fig compote.   It was definitely a keeper recipe.   And, the ingredient amounts listed below are mostly approximations -- I did this one mostly by sight rather than by measuring utensils.   

Pork Chops with Fig Compote

(makes 4 servings)

4 bone-in pork chops

2 tablespoons olive oil

kosher salt 

fresh ground black pepper

1/2 cup diced onion

1 garlic clove, minced

1/2 cup red wine

1 cup chicken broth

pinch of dried thyme

1 jar (about 1 cup) dried fig compote 

 

-- Season pork chops on both sides with salt and pepper

-- Heat large heavy skillet over medium high heat.  Add olive oil and swirl to coat pan. 

-- Sear pork chops on each side until just golden brown, turning only once. 

-- Remove to a platter and keep warm

-- Reduce heat, add onions and saute for about 2 minutes

-- Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute

-- Pour the red wine into the pan to deglaze and scrape up browned bits

-- Cook one minute, then add chicken broth, thyme, and fig compote

-- Cook over medium heat until sauce thickens

-- Return chops to the pan to warm and cover in sauce

-- Serve chops with sauce spooned over top

My Achilles heel is pork.  For some reason I have a lot of trouble not over-cooking it.  Chops, especially the thinner cuts, just cook so much faster than I anticipate.  So if you have this tendency at all, I would recommend that when you remove your seared chops from the pan, leave them a little undercooked.  They'll cook more once you return them to the pan.  

Lastly, this is a fast recipe, perfect for weeknights.  I served it with some roasted blue and red potatoes and some zucchini rounds sauteed in olive oil and seasoned with fleur de sel.   

Note:  Since posting this, I've created a new variation on this recipe to make an orange-y pork.  Instead of deglazing with white wine, I use orange juice.  And I replace the fig compote for about a cup of orange marmalade.  All of the rest stays exactly the same.  I love the combination of citrus with pork, so for me, this is an even tastier recipe.