For the Love of Figs

Story, photos and recipes by Cynthia Nobles 

In a few weeks it will be high time to partake in one of the most delectable rites of a Louisiana summer: standing in the shade of a fig tree, picking soft, plump pieces of fruit, and enjoying their earthy sweetness right then and there. 

The fig is one of the first plants humans grew. Although figs seem as Southern as pecans, they're actually native to the region around western Turkey. Fig trees did not arrive in the U.S. until around the 16th century. 

Many varieties grow well in south Louisiana, especially the old reliable Celeste. I know several gardeners who exclusively grow the LSU Ag Center varieties that thrive in our humid climate, which include the popular LSU Purple and LSU Gold. 

I recently planted a Brown Turkey variety in my yard. It’s only waist high. So, until it is large enough to produce significant fruit, I am being extra nice to my fig-growing friends.

Many of us have stories about our grandmothers putting figs into jams, cookies, and pies. My friend Connie LaCombe from Iota has a tale that involves a nostalgic Louisiana favorite, fig cake.

Connie is an accomplished home baker. A few years ago, her daughter Gretchen announced her wedding plans, so Connie decided to bake the bridal cake. The scrollwork and icing-flower confection was made of 5 filled layers. The middle layer was baked from Connie’s mother’s recipe for fig cake. 

Gretchen is crazy about figs, and she grew up eating her grandmother Florence’s fig cakes for birthdays and holidays. It was important that this cake be part of her big day. The family had even picked and canned figs from her grandmother’s backyard tree especially for the event.

The morning of the wedding, Connie brought the iced layers to the reception hall, set the cake up perfectly, then went home to dress. Right before the bride walked down the aisle, Connie received heart stopping news – the wedding cake had fallen onto the floor into a crumbly mess. Nobody saw it happen. The only thing left on the table was the cake’s now-sloppy, almond-flavored bottom layer. Panicked, and keeping word of the catastrophe from her daughter, Connie put faith in her friend and fellow amateur baker, Jackie Trahan, who’d been instructed to run to the grocery store and buy cupcakes.

At the door of the reception hall, Connie finally fessed up to her daughter about the cake disaster. The bride naturally expressed shock, but put on her best face. As the wedding party walked in, there was another shock. On the bride’s table stood a 4-layer wedding cake that was basically a mirror image of the grand original that had fallen. 

It had taken an hour for Gretchen to say “I do” in Church Point, and 40 minutes to drive to the reception in Iota. During that relatively short amount of time, Jackie, along with her daughters Sonya, Kelly, and Amanda, and her mother-in-law, Ruby, had miraculously baked, cooled, filled, and iced new pineapple, yellow, and strawberry cake layers. The baking went on in 3 different houses. Luckily, the ladies all lived close to the reception hall. Without a single guest noticing, they delivered the new layers, reconstructed the remaining almond layer, and expertly piped on decorations.    

The only thing missing in the replacement was the middle layer of fig cake, which would have taken too long to bake. Connie says that the weight of the dense fig layer is what toppled the whole thing over in the first place. Had she put it on the bottom, she laments, the cake would have remained upright.  

Gretchen now has a hilarious fig story to tell her children and grandchildren. Her love for figs has not waned, and every July she, her husband, and young children drive from their home in Youngsville to her grandmother’s house to pick from that cherished tree. 

Connie has pretty much given up baking wedding cakes. But as long as her mother’s fig tree produces, she will continue making fig cakes. As a matter of fact, she’s planning to give one to Gretchen for her next wedding anniversary.
 


​Do you have a Louisiana agriculture story or a recipe you’d like to share? Contact me at [email protected]
 
Cynthia Nobles is the cookbook editor for LSU Press and the author/co-author of several historical cookbooks, including A Confederacy of Dunces Cookbook, The Delta Queen Cookbook, and The Fonville Winans Cookbook.
 
 Preserved Figs
Makes 6-7 pints
 
1 gallon (16 cups) firm fresh figs
Enough boiling water to cover figs
2 tablespoons baking soda
8 cups sugar
2 cups water
Juice of 1 lemon
 
1. Rinse figs. Put in a large heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water by 1 inch. Gently stir in soda and let sit 30 minutes. (Soda toughens the skins so the figs stay whole).
2. Drain and rinse figs. Cut off stems and set figs aside.
3. In a large Dutch oven, combine sugar and 2 cups water. Boil briskly 10 minutes. Lower heat to a simmer and carefully add figs. Simmer uncovered on very low heat until thick and syrupy, from 1-2 hours. Stir only if figs appear to stick to pot, and do so very gently.
4. While figs are cooking, sterilize lids and jars for canning. (Wash jars, lids, and lid rings in hot soapy water. Boil jars 5 minutes. Boil a few inches water in a saucepan, remove from heat, and add lids and rings. Leave jars, lids, and rings in hot water until ready for use).
5. Add lemon juice to figs during last 10 minutes of cooking. Using a slotted spoon, place figs into prepared jars. Ladle syrup over figs until syrup reaches ¼ inch from jar top. Wipe rims with a damp, clean paper towel and screw lids onto jars.
6. Process jars in a hot water bath 10 minutes. (Be sure water is at least 2 inches above jars). Remove jars from water, cool slightly, and test for seal.
 
 
 
Duck Breast with Fig Sauce
Makes 2 servings
 
½ cup fig preserves
½ cup orange juice
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
½ teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
¼ cup orange liqueur
Pinch ground white pepper
2 domestic duck breast halves, with skin and deboned (½ pound each)
Salt and ground black pepper
 
1. In a medium saucepan, combine fig preserves, orange juice, vinegar, ginger, rosemary, orange liqueur and white pepper. Simmer until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes, and keep warm. 
2. With a sharp knife, score duck breast skins at ½-inch intervals, forming a diamond pattern and being careful not to cut through to the meat. Dry duck thoroughly, and sprinkle with salt and black pepper.
3. Heat a large, heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat. When hot, add duck, skin side down, and sear until brown, about 8 minutes. Flip duck over and cook another 7 minutes. For medium rare, cook to an internal temperature of 135°F. For medium, cook until 145°F, and 155°F for medium well (which might be a little dry.)  Slice duck at ½-inch intervals and serve with warm sauce.
 
 
 
Fresh Fig Ice Cream
Makes 1 quart
 
2 pounds fresh, ripe figs (about 20), stemmed and coarsely chopped
½ cup water
¼ cup honey
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 can (14 oz.) sweetened condensed milk
1 cup whole milk
1 tablespoon cornstarch
¼ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup cold heavy cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
 
1. In a medium saucepan, bring figs, water, honey, and lemon juice to a boil. Cook over medium-high heat, covered, 10 minutes. Remove cover and cook until mixture is very thick and liquid is mostly evaporated, about 5-10 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool to lukewarm.
2. In a medium saucepan, combine condensed milk, whole milk, cornstarch, and salt, and stir until cornstarch dissolves. Whisk over medium heat until boiling. Reduce to a simmer and cook 1 minute, whisking constantly. Remove from heat.
3. Beat eggs in a medium bowl. Slowly whisk in ½ cup hot milk mixture. Return milk mixture to low heat and slowly whisk in egg mixture. Cook over very low heat 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Remove from heat.
4. Stir heavy cream into custard mixture and strain into a medium bowl. Stir in vanilla and cooked figs. Refrigerate until completely cool.
5. Pour fig custard into ice cream canister and freeze according to manufacturer's directions. 
 
 
Fig Cake
Makes 1 (9x13-inch) cake, or 2 (9-inch) layers
 
2 cups all-purpose flour
1½ cups sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1½ teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 cup vegetable oil, or 1 stick melted butter and ½ cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pint fig preserves, coarsely chopped, with its syrup
1½ cups chopped, roasted pecans
 
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9x13-inch baking pan or 2 round 9-inch cake pans. 
2. In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. In another bowl mix together the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix well with a spoon, then fold in preserves with its syrup and the pecans. Pour into prepared pan(s).
3. Bake until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50-60 minutes for the 9x13-inch pan, and 35-45 minutes for 9-inch pans. For 9x13, cool completely and serve from the pan. For 9-inch layers, cool 10 minutes in the pan, then remove to a wire rack and cool completely before frosting.