Fig and goat cheese salad

I love figs!  I love them right out of the pint container, off the tree, in a tart, or like this, wrapped in prosciutto.

These are figs that I purchased from Sunshine orchards,at the farmers market before I left on vacation to Seattle.  The  season for them is so short and I did not want to miss out. 

Except for the dressing, I am not going to put exact amount and measurements here. This can be made for one or for a hundred.  Just prepare what you'll eat.

First start with the dressing. 

 I put a cup of good balsamic vinegar in a small sauce pan with a tablespoon of sugar, and reduced it to about a quarter of a cup.  This creates a thick, shinny syrup, that coats the back of a spoon.

Next I roll each fig in a thin strip of prosciutto.

You may have to cut each piece of prosciutto in half length wise.

Next sear them in a skillet so that the prosciutto gets crispy and the fig warms up but doesn't really get too cooked. 

Just add a little olive oil to a non stick pan over medium heat. Cook all around to that the prosciutto get crispy all over.


Now that the figs are warm. You can assemble the salad.  I used arugula for this salad.  The bitterness really compliments the sweetness of the figs and balsamic syrup.

Add some goat cheese (I love the goat cheese from Ryals goat dairy).  Drizzle the balsamic syrup over the top, add salt and pepper to taste.  And gently toss with your fingers.  I like to place the wrapped figs on top so they stay crunchy as long as possible.  And viola!  Perfection on a plate.

Enjoy!

 Oh, far warning... you might want to make extra wrapped figs.  They seem to disappear quickly!