These Honey Roasted Figs make a simple yet delicious dessert, especially when paired with mascarpone or Greek yogurt.
The fresh figs are sprinkled with butter, honey, cinnamon, pistachio, and a little lemon zest before being baked in the oven until they are soft and tender.
Perfect for when you have a glut of figs or when your fruit isn't quite as sweet and tender as you would hope.
How to buy and store figs
If you aren't lucky enough to have a tree or a neighbors tree to raid then when buying figs at the grocery store choose ones that have unblemished skin and are dry to the touch.
The figs should be soft but still holding onto the perfect fig shape. Try not to squeeze or squash your fig as they have a delicate thin skin once ripe.
Figs can go bad quickly, so ideally you want to keep them in the refrigerator, but remember to remove them at least 30 minutes before you eat them as the fig wants to be room temperature or slightly warm before you eat it.
What do fresh figs taste like?
Ripe in-season figs are so sweet, and taste like a mixture of honey, nuts, and berries. They have a sticky dense inside yet are delicate to eat. We have a fig tree in the garden and fresh from the tree after a warm day figs are one of the best treats! (But you have to look higher up right in the middle of the tree as the kangaroos eat the low hanging ones!)
You can eat the whole of the fig, the skin is thin and soft whilst the inside is densely packed with edible seeds.
If a fig isn't completely ripe it will ripen within a couple of days….or you can cook it with honey 😉
Figs with honey
Figs and honey are one of those classic combinations that just works so perfectly together. The honey mirrors the taste of the figs so wonderfully. (Seriously I am drooling writing this!)
This recipe uses honey and butter to make a wonderful syrup for the figs. Especially great for when your figs are a little hard and need a boost of sweetness.
How to cook figs
You need to start by cutting the figs. Here we are going to cut a cross in the top of the fig, to do this cut about halfway through the fig and then rotate 90º and cut halfway down again. This will allow you to push the fig open like a flower. Hard to explain with words but the pictures show it perfectly!
Once the figs are cut place them in a baking dish ready for their garnishes.
- Dotting each fig with butter
- Sprinkle over cinnamon
- Drizzle over honey
- Grate over the lemon zest
- Scatter over pistachios
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How long to cook figs for?
Fresh figs don't need to be cooked for long. Just long enough for the flesh to soften and for the butter and honey to melt together.
These roasted honey figs take just 7-10 minutes in a 400ºF/200ºC oven. Perfect for serving at the end of a dinner party! As you can have them prepped in the baking dish and then just place them in the oven as you are clearing away the main course.
How amazing would these be after a Moroccan feast of chicken tagine and buttered jeweled couscous.
What to eat with roasted figs?
These figs are sticky and sweet, so to cut through that I like to add a dollop of yogurt or mascarpone or creme fraiche. The creaminess works so well with the flesh of the fig and the slight sourness of the cream/yogurt balances the sweetness perfectly.
Although my kids like them with vanilla ice cream or brown sugar ice cream!
Enjoy x
For more delicious roasted fruit recipes check out:
- Roasted Peaches with Brown Sugar
- Roasted Plums with Thyme
- Roasted Strawberries
- Roasted Apples (Joy the Baker)
- Roasted Pears (Where is my Spoon)
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Get the Recipe
Honey Roasted Figs with Cinnamon Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 fresh figs - see note 1
- 3 tablespoon butter
- ¼ cup runny honey
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoon shelled pistachio nuts
- mascarpone/creme fraiche/greek yogurt to serve
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to 400ºF/200ºC
- Cut a cross in the top of each fig, ensuring that you don't go more than half way down the fig. Use your fingers to push the fig open like a flower (See note 2)
- Place the the figs in a baking dish and add around a teaspoon of butter to each fig.
- Drizzle over the honey ensuring some falls over and into each fig.
- Sprinkle over the cinnamon.
- Grate a little lemon zest over each fig.
- Sprinkle the pistachios around the figs.
- Roast for 7-10 minutes until the figs have softened and the butter has melted into the honey.
- Serve warm with your chosen creamy element.
Notes
- You want to pick ripe figs or ones that are just a little under-ripe. The variety doesn't matter too much, although the green or black ones look the most beautiful when roasted.
- See the bulk of the post for detailed pictures of this process.
Nutrition
Nutrition is per serving
Shai Abramson says
Simple, elegant and delicious. Served it to guests and they were swooning.
Claire McEwen says
Oh this makes me so happy 🙂
Cx
Dorothy Dunton says
Hi Claire! These look absolutely delicious! We have a fig tree in our yard that measures about 10' high by 10' wide. I'd honestly never had a fig until we planted this a number of years ago. I've made wonderful fig jam and I just eat them when I'm picking them! I have a bottle of really nice wildflower honey that I think would work well here. Can't wait for my figs to ripen!!
Claire McEwen says
Wow that is a big tree 😀
When do figs ripen over there? It must be soon I am guessing as it is about 6 months since our tree had fruit.