This summer I was fortunate enough to have access to plenty of fresh figs from the two overhanging fig trees in the backyard. This time last year I lived elsewhere, a place without fruit trees. It was a lot of fun picking all those figs, especially since no one else in the neighboring apartments seemed interested in them. They were all mine!
I went for a run that morning, then picked the figs; they filled up my largest bowl. My landlord stores ladders in the backyard, so I had one of them at my disposal, and boy was it useful. A lot of the figs were way up high and I would never have gotten them without a ladder. Most of them were perfectly ripe, and oozing a little nectar at the blossom end. Some were slightly underripe, but that was ok with me – I didn’t want an overly sweet jam, so the tangier figs helped with that.
I love, love, love the taste of orange and figs together. I first tasted the combination in this Dalmatian fig-orange jam, and thought it was just amazing. The sweet figs and tangy orange are a perfect combination.
I also wanted to try making a jam with honey instead of sugar, in part because I wanted to avoid using an overly refined sweetener. Figs and honey seem to go together, too, so it seemed like a natural, logical combination.
At first the honey flavor was pretty prominent, but after the jam had a chance to sit for a while (like overnight), it had mellowed and balanced with the fig and orange flavors. It also seemed less sweet, which was fine with me.
This is a wonderful fruit preserve, and I will absolutely make it again. I think it will be good as a sauce with chicken, perhaps with a little bit of spiciness added to it!
Fig Orange Honey Jam
5 cups figs
1/4 cup water
1 3/4 – 2 cups honey
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup lemon juice
zest of two oranges
Wash and quarter figs, and place them in a large pot (I used an 8 qt. stock pot). Heat the figs with 1/4 cup water just to get them started. Cook the figs on medium-low until they start to break down, stirring and smashing them with the back of a wooden spoon to help break them down further. They will start to thicken.
Add the honey, orange juice, lemon juice, and zest, and stir to combine. Keep stirring so that the mixture won’t burn on the bottom. Since you are working with honey and not sugar, the tendency to stick and/or burn might be a little higher than usual.
Cook the figs to your desired consistency; the longer you cook the mixture, the thicker it will be. Puree it some with a stick blender if you want the figs to have a more even, smooth consistency (this is what I prefer).
Immediately pour the mixture into hot, sterilized 1/2 pint jars, leaving 1/2-inch head space. Adjust caps. Process 20 minutes in boiling water bath.
This jam tastes better after the flavors have had time to marry.
