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The luxurious fruit has a calling beyond the ubiquitous Newton. In Tampa, a restaurant marries fig slices with prosciutto: nirvana on a baguette.
By JANET K. KEELER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times, published August 14, 2002
This summer's obsession with figs began with The Sandwich.
In June, I got a taste of nirvana and couldn't stop thinking about it, not even during a two-week trip to California, where I ate in restaurants in Monterey, San Francisco and Sonoma. Nothing I sampled in those legendary food meccas erased the memory of the fig sandwich from Pane Rustica in South Tampa.
A colleague and I even rushed across the Gandy Bridge from downtown St. Petersburg on our lunch break one day and begged for The Sandwich when we learned it wasn't among that day's specials. They obliged, and we were happy.
The Sandwich got me thinking about fresh figs, something we don't see a lot of in Tampa Bay grocery stores, and how else they could be used in cooking. The ancient fruit is more familiar to many of us as the filling for Fig Newton cookies.
We eat more than a billion Fig Newtons and tons of dried figs every year but many people spend a lifetime without eating a fresh fig. That's too bad. The subtle sweetness of the fig is a treat that should be tried at least once. I know, I went 44 years without one.
First, though, you'll want to know what's in the life-altering sandwich.
Kevin Kruszewski and his wife, Karyn, own Pane Rustica Bakery & Cafe (2821 S MacDill Ave., Tampa; (813) 902-8828), a small place on a trendy stretch of road that draws patrons in droves at the noon hour. They know they can get something innovative on very fresh, very rustic bread baked on the premises.
This summer, as figs became available, Kevin Kruszewski layered slices of Black Mission figs with creamy brie, salty prosciutto, a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and a mound of peppery arugula on a baguette. A real baguette, crusty on the outside, dense and flavorful on the inside.
The sweet-salty-tangy-earthy flavor of Kruszewski's combination imparted a freshness that my taste buds had forgotten existed. The figs were the most surprising part, lending a slight crunch from the tiny seeds.
I'm not the only lover of the fig sandwich; Kruszewski reports that it's a good seller. Other popular specials that showcase Kruszewski's imagination are pizzas of black olive tapenade, dry ricotta cheese, roasted red peppers and flat-leaf Italian parsley, and caramelized sweet onions, creamy gorgonzola and rosemary.
"Every day I try to come up with something new and interesting," Kruszewski says. "As the seasons turn, I think about what's going to happen as far as fresh product."
Kruszewski is a master of simple tastes who thinks that fewer ingredients can have maximum impact as long as they are top quality. For instance, he uses the $15-plus-a-pound Italian prosciutto di Parma in the fig sandwich rather than less expensive, less punchy domestic varieties.
To re-create the sandwich at home, Kruszewski suggests letting the figs get slightly mushy and over-ripe. They will be sweeter that way. Slice them with a sharp chef's knife or a serrated knife so as not to crush the soft figs.
The biggest problem with figs is finding them. I bought Black Mission and Brown Turkey varieties in a large, newer Publix in St. Petersburg and have occasionally come across them at produce stands such as Garden of Eatin' on S Westshore Boulevard in Tampa. Prices vary but can be steep, anywhere from $2.99 a pint to $6 a pound.
Ask your grocery store produce manager to stock them. They can get figs from purveyors but want to be assured that people will buy them. If the fruit goes bad on the shelves, managers won't order again.
Hurry, though. Right now is fig season in California, which grows 99 percent of the country's commercial crop. The state's arid weather mimics the fig's native region, the Mediterranean.
California grows five varieties of figs: Calimyrna, Kadota, Adriatic, Mission or Black Mission and Brown Turkeys. All figs are sweet, but vary in color, size and concentration. It's the Black Mission and Brown Turkeys that usually find their way to the South. (Fig trees can also be grown in Florida. Check with a local nursery for availability and growing information.)
When buying fresh figs, look for firm fruit if you're not going to eat them right away -- they'll ripen quickly. For immediate eating, choose softer figs. "Make sure they haven't been sitting on a grocery shelf for a long time -- they'll begin to sweat and mold," Ron Klamm, manager of the California Fig Advisory Board, told the Contra Costa Times of Walnut Creek, Calif.
To prepare figs, simply wash them and cut off the stem. Don't attempt to peel the thin skin or you'll take off most the fruit with it.
I tried figs a number of ways and decided I prefer them raw to cooked. A Chicken & Figs dish was a dissappointment when the cooked figs turned to gooey blobs. Sort of like eating melted Fig Newtons.
Figs in salads and as appetizers held more promise. Mixed Green Salad with Figs, Gorgonzola and Pecans played pungent and subtle flavors off each other with a mustard vinaigrette holding them all together.
If you want to simplify things, wrap a slice of paper-thin prosciutto around a fig half -- a classic combination in Italy -- or toast a slice of hearty multigrain bread, slather it with cream cheese and layer on sliced figs. What a tasty way to get a good dose of Vitamin A and potassium. As a bonus, figs have the highest fiber content -- about 20 percent of the recommended daily amount -- of any fruit.
It's not surprising that Mother Nature has come up with such a delight. It's a shame, though, that more people don't know about it.
Maybe The Sandwich can change all that.
-- Information from Times wires was used in this report.
The California Fig Advisory Board's Web site, www.californiafigs.com, provides recipes along with nutritional and historical information about figs.
If you can't find fresh figs in your market, you can order them through the mail from Harry & David. Call toll-free 1-800-547-3033 or log on to www.harryanddavid.com. Another source of mail-order fresh figs is www.texasfigs.com which is taking orders now for shipments in 2003.