I have a FFWP. A fig first world problem.

“Problem.”

Over the last three years, our little fig tree has gone from “c’mon man, is that all?” to “Holy crap, I just picked 3 pounds and there are still 2 1/2 in the fridge from yesterday what are we going to do because this is amazing and here have more figs.”

This year’s fig tree is my favorite. 9 pounds of figs in 9 days. I have a few figs as my pre-run snack. I have figs with Second Breakfast. I have figs on a ham sandwich at lunch, we have figs at dinner, and we take figgy things parties.

Naturally, we have figs for dessert.

And on Friday night, I busted out one of my most favorite, figgy not-a-recipe things ever:

And then I busted out my second favorite thing ever, bacon, and whipped up a fresh fig and bacon jam that ended up smeared on a chunk of crusty bread, served spread across a wedge of brie, spread on panini and burgers, and then served on pizza.

For the panini you see here, we used a the Fig and bacon jam, deli shaved turkey, crispy bacon, sliced fresh figs (because why not), and a couple of thin slices of brie on Three Seed bread from the grocery store bakery.

Print

Fresh Fig and Bacon Jam

Fresh figs, caramelized onions, and bacon produce a jam worthy to accompany your favorite sandwich, burger, or a wedge of brie.
Nutritional Information
Calories: 59.1 | Fat: 2.0g | Carbs 9.9g | Fiber 1.0g | Protein 1.0g

Ingredients

• 4 slices of bacon, diced
• 1/2 large yellow onion, cut into 1/3-inch slices
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cup water
• 1 lb fresh figs, halved (quartered if very large)
• 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 2 Tbsp honey

Instructions

1. In a pot or pan with a lid, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until crispy.
2. Use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon to a small paper-towel lined plate.
3. Reduce heat to low-medium, pour off all but 1 Tbsp bacon grease and add the onions to the pan.
4. Cook covered and stirring occasionally, for 15-20 minutes until onions have begun to caramelize (if they start to scorch before then, add 1/4 cup water and cover again).
5. Increase heat to medium, add the garlic, and stir, cooking for 1 minute more.
6. Add the water, figs, balsamic, and honey to the pot and cover, cooking for 20 minutes and stirring once or twice.
7. Remove the lid and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, for another 20 minutes until almost all of the liquid has reduced - when you draw your spoon through the fig mixture, there should be no almost no liquid running into the spoon track.
8. Let cool for 15 minutes and then transfer to a blender and pulse several times until you get the spreadable consistency you are looking for - it doesn't need to be puree-smooth.
9. Will keep in the fridge for at least 8 days. It potentially could last much longer (like the source recipe) but I'll probably never ever leave it alone long enough to find out.

Notes

Yields: 14 2-Tbsp servings

Adapted from: Cranberry & Bacon Chutney

Estimated time: 1 hour 15 minutes