Hey baby...looking for a date?

Well...it's a fig actually, but thanks for asking.

I'm not particularly proud to say this, but around the neighborhood I'm known as the local fruit hussy.

Patrick's plums, Joe's apricots, Larry's pears, Bill's lemons, Domingo's figs...and I have my eye on Andy's peaches. I dare say, the list goes on...

Come harvest time, my neighbors know to expect a knock on the door, or perhaps the familiar site of my hand groping blindly over the fence to snatch their low hanging fruit.

I've also been known to park my SUV along my neighbors' tree-lined driveways so I can climb up the hood and straddle the sunroof (don't tell Charlie I cracked it last fall) to pluck the juiciest specimens. The kids have gotten used to waiting in the getaway car, motor running...they just know to lean down low so that their friends don't see them as their mother commits several misdemeanors in the name of produce.

"Why not just bask in the bounty of our local farmers' market?" you ask. A few reasons...1.) sense of community...sharing like this just feels so old-fashioned to me and my friends know that when I come-a-knockin' they'll end up with less rotten fruit on their pavement and more pear chutney in their pantries 2.) the thrill of the hunt...nothing like swinging from a tree to earn your meal and 3.) I'm wicked cheap and this fruit is free!



So, the other day Domingo called to let me know that his figs were ripe-for-the-pickin'. Sure enough, I climbed up onto my potting shed table, peered over the fence and caught a glimpse of this little jewel of purple plumpness dangling just within my reach. I snapped a shot just before plucking it, along with as many more of its succulent sisters that would fit in the front pocket of my sweatshirt.

There's lots of fun stuff to make with these little beauties including fig jam, fig tarts, roasted fig appetizers but today I'm choosing to share with you the easiest and tastiest recipe of all...perfect as the starter of any fall menu or, as Carly and I have been known to do, enjoy alone as a fancy-feeling weekend light lunch when the guys are out eating large slabs of red meat somewhere else.

Thanks again Domingo for indulging my botanical kleptomania...and Bill...don't think I haven't noticed that those lemons look like they're juicin' up real nice...any day now. Kids...keep the motor running!

Roasted Fig Prosciutto and Blue Cheese Salad
with Lemon Balsamic Vinaigrette

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

For the dressing...

Mix:

• 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons honey
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• pepper to taste

Whisk in:

• 1/3 cup of olive oil

For the salad...

Slice lengthwise:

• 4 ripe figs
  

Wrap figs in:

• 8 generous slices of prosciutto
  

Roast figs on a baking sheet for about 10-15 minutes until they are soft and slightly caramelized.

Toss with dressing and divide among four plates

• 5 cups fresh baby greens

Place 2 warm roasted figs on each plate of greens and crumble over

• blue cheese to taste
  

Drizzle with more dressing to taste.

Serves 4

Try any combo of these variations: Double up on the amount of figs, mix blue cheese in with the dressing, slip the blue cheese under the prosciutto and roast with the figs, add candied nuts to the salad, try any other vinaigrette that appeals to you...this one is really unique and awesome:

Tangerine Vinaigrette

Mix in a small saucepan, boil and reduce by half:

• 1/2 cup fresh tangerine juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fresh grated tangerine zest

Transfer to a medium bowl and whisk in:

• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 Tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• tiny pinch of cinnamon

When life gives me lemons... I make lemonade, lemon bars, lemon poundcake, lemon chiffon pie...and lemon buttermilk pancakes...

Interest rates, unemployment, bailouts, meltdowns, inflation, recession...this economy is freaking me out! So, I bake, I knead, I whisk, I roll and...I eat....and I share.

As the wife/business partner of a mortgage broker, I find myself just a little too up close and personal with the ups and mostly downs of today's economy.

Every morning, I wake to the alluring aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafting from downstairs (Charlie's already been up and on email since 4 am) but my senses are quickly assaulted by the familiar sound of CNBC and Bernanke's voice delivering the latest unemployment numbers followed by a shout upstairs, "Hon, did you catch if the ten-year treasury rate is up or down?"

So, I shuffle downstairs, pour my half-cup ration of real coffee (I tend to run a little naturally- caffeinated), swap the channel from ticker tape to Tom & Jerry and wrap myself in the comfort of preparing the family's morning meal.

So, I share with you this morning's therapy...a tweaked version of buttermilk pancakes from a recipe I hastily tore out of a 1996ish issue of some magazine I ripped off from my pedatrician's office. It's a bit of an experiment and you'll learn about me that I am about as fearless in the kitchen as I am fearful of just about everything else.

I'm adding lemon (as a tribute to the sour state of our economy), anti-oxidant-rich blueberries (to ward off the "evil spirits") and I'll substitute drained and mashed cottage cheese for the ricotta that was in the original recipe cause that's what I have on hand.

The spray of zest tickles my weary senses and the tangy smell of buttermilk makes me think that this was surely something Aunt Bea would have made for Opie.

I sneak in a hug while William (my six-year-old sous chef) insists on "helping" with the sifting (note the Spiderman jammies) and I grin when my thirteen-year-old Rumpelstiltskin of a daughter, Carly, rolls out of bed, drawn by the smell of cakes puffing on the griddle...it must be summer!

I'm there. I'm in my zone. Bernanke can't find me here. For just a little while, my kitchen is my shelter, shielding me from the impact of whatever economic bomb might touch ground today.

I can't wait till lunch...

Lemon Blueberry

Buttermilk Pancakes

Sift together in a large bowl:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix in a medium bowl:

• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1 tablespoon greated lemon zest
• 1/3 cup cottage cheese, drained and mashed

Add wet ingredients to dry.

Whisk until soft peaks form and fold gently into batter:

• 2 egg whites

Drop 1/2 cup portions onto a moderate, lighly-oiled nonstick griddle and sprinkle over:

• blueberries to taste (about 1 cup total for this recipe)

When batter starts to bubble and edges look browned, flip with a wide spatula and finish cooking other side to desired doneness (Carly likes them gooey inside but Willy likes them cooked through).

Enjoy warm with butter, maple syrup and, if you've got it (like I always do) squirt a little whipped cream on the side and toss on some more fresh blueberries too if the spirit moves you.

Makes 8-10 really, really yummy cakes (God, they were good...).

By the way: Even though I am a self-diagnosed "Nervous-Nelly" and the state of this economy has me in a bit of a tizzy, let's just say, I'm actually a pretty sunny sort of gal. I hope you hook up to my newly-discovered blogging wagon and follow me as I seek solace in sustenance from this wacky, albeit mostly wonderful, world. Remember, as much as I like to cook, I love to share...