Farmers' Market Friday : figs & ricotta

Originally posted September 2, 2011 on Bettina Writes. 

One weekend's farmers' market bounties

So, the title of this post is a little misleading. My local farmers' market is actually on Sundays, but 1) posting this on Friday gives me time to cook, eat and write, and 2) I like alliteration. Here's something I put together using mostly ingredients from said market. Call it a tartine, a crostini, an open-faced sandwich--whatever you call it, it makes a tasty hors d'œuvre, snack, breakfast or lunch. But first, a little bit more on farmers' markets.

I've mentioned the farmers' market before, and there's a reason I'm mentioning it again. Farmers' markets bring together several of my favorite things:

-small businesses: often times, I'm buying food from the same person who grew or raised it, not after it's passed 20 hands to get in my cart

-environmental sustainability: the food doesn't travel very far, and even farms that aren't certified organic tend to use organic practices

-community: you meet and see the same people each week, both selling and buying

-and of course, food: really, really good food

For a while I didn't frequent the farmers' market because I thought it was outside my budget, but I've since learned that if you let the season be your shopping list (that is, buy what's abundant and in season), it's barely any more than going to my local grocery store, and tastes so much better. (And as far as the cost of meat and dairy goes, this piece by Michele Simon sums up my exact feelings far more eloquently than I could.)

As with my previous farmers' market inspired recipe, this doesn't need to be terribly exact. However, the amounts below are for approximately four pieces (which I think makes a nice sized lunch for one if you add a salad or side, or an appetizer/snack for two), but adjust to your preferences.

INGREDIENTS

Four 1/2-3/4 inch slices of baguette, sliced on a bias
2 figs
4 Tbsp ricotta cheese
2-4 tsp honey, to taste
salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS

Preheat grill or grill pan.

Slice each fig into quarters (either slices or quarter wedges).

Grill baguette slices and figs, until bread is toasted and figs are soft (bonus if you can get grill marks, but my grill pan is finicky and my tummy was hungry).

Place grilled bread on your serving plate. Top each slice of bread with about 1Tbsp of ricotta. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with 1 or 2 slices of the fig, as desired. Drizzle with honey. If desired, sprinkle with chopped walnuts (or pecans, or pistachios).

If you want to serve a bunch of these, grill the bread and figs in advance--even if they are room temperature (as opposed to hot off the grill), the grilling still imparts nice flavor. 

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