THE CANNY COOK: Figs, ricotta and prosciutto on toast serves 4, £1.82* per person By Eleanor Maidment For You Magaine Published: 08:00 BST, 31 August 2024 | Updated: 08:00 BST, 31 August 2024 e-mail View comments September always feels like the start of a new year. After the leisurely pace of August – during which I hope we were all lolling around in the garden eating sun-kissed tomato and mozzarella salads and drinking chilled rosé – we are thrown rather abruptly back into the reality of life.
With little time to recalibrate it can be a bumpy transition, so my advice for the next few weeks is to keep things as simple as possible in the kitchen. Thankfully there is some very lovely produce available at this time of year, and figs are among the shining stars. Although we see them on and off all year round, the best (which usually come from Turkey) appear for just a few weeks between late August and early October.
Their delicate, honeyed pink flesh is wrapped in a velvety purple skin, and they require little preparation. It is more a case of pairing them with other complementary ingredients. Soft cheeses – goat’s, gorgonzola, mozzarella – are great companions, as are salty cured meats and bitter leaves including rocket and chicory.
I think you lose some of the unadulterated beauty of figs if you cook them, so tear them instead, or slice and use in salads, on puff-pastry tarts and cooked pizza bases – even simply on good sourdough toast, as in the recipe here. 4 fresh figs, £2; 120g pack prosciutto, £1.89 250g ricotta, £1.
40; 1 sourdough loaf, £2 METHOD Toast 4 thick slices of sourdough in a toaster, or drizzle with olive oil, rub with the cut side of a garlic clove and brown under the grill or in a griddle pan. Tip the ricotta into a bowl with some salt and pepper and beat with a wooden spoon. You can also add some finely grated lemon zest and shredded basil or mint leaves if you have them.
Spread the ricotta generously over the toast and top each slice with curls of the prosciutto and torn (or sliced) figs. Add a scattering of rocket leaves, if you have them. Finish with a drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper.
Do you have a great recipe for eating well and cutting food bills? Email [email protected].
If we print it here, we’ll send you a bottle of champagne *This cost assumes you already have some basic store-cupboard ingredients. prices taken from sainsbury’s and correct at time of going to press. Illustrations: Ellie Allen-Eslor Share or comment on this article: THE CANNY COOK: Figs, ricotta and prosciutto on toast e-mail Add comment.
