The figs are starting to ripen around here and so its time to make fig preserves. I never liked figs as a kid. Well. Maybe that’s not true. I never tasted figs as a kid. They looked gross. I am sure that’s how the whole “make fake strawberry jam outta figs” got started! Some mother decided to trick her kids into eating figs and it caught on.
Anyway, my old house, the cottage, which is now a rental house, has a huge fig tree and while I was living there I felt guilty to let the figs go to waste, so one day I called mama and asked her how to fix them. I’ve been in love with them ever since.
Ripe figs will have some good color on them and they should pull off the branch easily. The only hard part about picking them is reaching all the ones at the top of the tree. I will have to bring a ladder next time! And of course it’s a law that your nose will itch while yours fingers are all sticky with fig juice.
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It’s easy really. Preserves are nothing but fruit and sugar. Some recipes add some extra ingredients but I prefer them plain and simple.
First thing to do after picking, is to take off any stems that remain and rinse off any bugs. Ants love figs, so be sure to get rid of them.
Put them in a pot with a cup or two of water. I don’t have an actual recipe, but roughly 2:1, figs to sugar. I looked up some recipes to get the ratio, but when I tried that, they seemed just a little too sweet to me. So I go a little less sugar. I’m not sure if it does anything, but I also added a tiny pinch of salt as some recipes included.
Last year, I tried a recipe that included some lemon juice. I didn’t care for it. Mama also told me that Granddaddy used to add slices of lemon when he cooked them and that the lemon would be candied when he finished cooking. Now THAT sounds good!
Boil for 2-3 hours, stirring to prevent sticking. Burnt sugar is not a good smell. Trust me.
It takes at least two hours, but cook until liquid is thick and mostly non-existent. I like to mash the figs when I stir. The figs should be cooked down to almost 1/2 of the original amount.
Notice how thick they are in the above picture. This is how the final product should look. You can easily see from these pictures that fig preserves are not beautiful things. And in fact, are not particularly appetizing looking whatsoever. Brown just does not lend itself well to food. Again, I believe that’s why some smooth mama decided to add some color and call them “strawberries.”
I got about 12 jelly jars (half pints) from this cooking. I was giving all these to friends and co-workers to be eaten immediately, so I didn’t bother with canning for preservation. My next cooking will be going into my pantry for use during the next few months, so I will be taking the precautions to keep them fresh. I will run the jars through the dishwasher and fill them while they are still hot. The hot jars and the hot preserves will quickly seal the lids if you get them on quickly.
These do not last long around our house.
Is there a food you’ve discovered as an adult, that you were wrong about as a child?
As a kid, I never liked onions. They were too spicy for me. Now? I love them.
Thanks for the fig recipe! Such pretty pictures!
Happy day friend!
karianne
I loved most all vegetables even as a kid. It was fruits and desserts I didn’t like. um….. allllllll that’s changed now! LOL Thanks for stopping by KariAnne! 🙂
Yum! Like you, I never had liked figs even when we had a tree in our yard! But one day I tried something new at restaurant. It was delicious! Pork with fig glaze. I wrote about it here. http://bushelandapickle.com/2015/12/18/pork-chop-with-fig-sauce/. My daughter cans, thinking this would be better than the store bought. Thanks.
I have never cooked any dishes with figs, but I KNOW I would love it. I keep seeing things with goat cheese and figs and it is so intriguing. Thanks for visiting and I will return the favor! 🙂
This looks amazingly easy. Now if only I had a fig tree. I love fig jam and homemade much tastes even better. Now this is something to be thankful for today.
I picked another big batch today! So I will be cooking again tonight. Thanks for visiting Michelle. If you ever make it to Alabama, stop by and we’ll have some biscuits and fig preserves! 🙂
That’s one creative title. 🙂
Oh, I’m so loving this. I’m drooling. I wish we have some figs here.
I wish I could share a taste with you! Thanks for stopping by Lux!
I love fig preserves.
Thank you for the recipe!
Thank you for sharing this with us at Thoughts of Home.
It’s so easy! Thanks for coming by Laura. 🙂
This looks so good! I’ve never tried anything like this before =)
Blessings,
Edye | http://gracefulcoffee.wordpress.com
I was 40+ before I tried them, so there is hope for you yet, Edye! Thanks so much for stopping by. 🙂
How fabulous to use the fruits of your own trees!!
And I always love these kinds of gifts—they are consumable and made with love!!
jodie
http://www.jtouchofstyle.com
Hi Jodie! I do enjoy sharing the jars of figs. It gives me a good reason to drop in on a few friends that I haven’t seen in a while. Sometimes it takes just such a push for me to do it. Thanks for visiting. 🙂
Hey GwinGal! So nice to meet you. Thank you so much for linking up to Thriving on Thursdays. It’s great to have you here. I’m so, so envious of that fig tree in your garden. How lovely. I do love fig jam and yours looks delicious. You’re a woman of my own vintage and I live life the same as you. No grandchildren as yet as I’ve only got 2 young children myself. I started older. They don’t stop me in fact they help keep me young. It’s great to meet you and I hope you come back for a visit again. Would love to get to know you.
Best wishes,
Anne @ Domesblissity (Australia)
Hi Anne! So nice to meet you. I would love to have some young ones around now so I am a bit envious of you! I would handle them so much differently than I did when I was 20. I would take my granddaughters permanently if my daughter would let me. LOL Coming to visit your blog now. 🙂
Oh, and I’m featuring your beautiful fig jam at my party tomorrow.
Anne xx
Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe at the #RecipeSharingParty! I hope to see you next week. Pinned and Yummed. Please visit #OverTheMoon on Sunday or #ThursdayFavoriteThings for more sharing fun! Don’t forget to Comment your link #’s so I can be sure to visit and you get a chance to be featured!
Hi Marilyn! Thanks for visiting and I hope you get to try making fig preserves some time. 🙂
I love FIGS! This looks delish :).
Can you send me some (lol)
Have a GREAT day & thanks for sharing at reader tip tuesday. Hope to see you at this week’s party: http://www.jodiefitz.com/2017/08/15/reader-tip-tuesday-craft-recipe-party/
Oh Jodie! I just finished up a new batch….when can you be here? 🙂
All I can say is just YUMMMMM …
Sad to say, but I’ve only ever seen figs in Fig Newton cookies ?! But based on your pictures they look a little like garlic pods!
Yes, in shape they are similar to garlic, but they are bigger. If you ever head south, look me up and we’ll have some biscuits and fig preserves. 🙂
I can’t say that I’ve ever had figs (other than in Fig Newtons!), and I’ve never even seen a fig tree, but my mom keeps hinting about how wonderful the figs were at a friend’s house in NJ, so I’m going to have to see if I can grow a tree here for her.
Dawn, if you ever take a trip down south, be sure to look me up and we will remedy your misfortune of never having tried figs. 🙂