Stuffed Figs with Goat Cheese – Recipe for Roasted Sweet Figs with Tangy Goat Cheese and Date Honey
I love autumn for many reasons. The leaves are turning, the air is crisp, and many of my favorite fruits and vegetables are in season. One of the most elegant of all fall fruits is the fig. This sweet and succulent fruit has a rich and dramatic history stretching back to Biblical days and beyond. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve are said to have covered their nudity with fig leaves. Figs are one of the “Seven Species” of Israel referred to in Deuteronomy. They are also mentioned in the sensual Song of Solomon:
The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away.
– (Song of Solomon 2:13)
The fruit is in season twice per year; in Israel, the summer season is historically marked by the time between the first and second fig harvests.
We all know figs as fruit, but you might be surprised to learn that the fig is actually a flower inverted onto itself. The interior seeds are the actual “fruit”– the fig itself is the flower. It is likely that the fig first grew in southern Arabia; archaeologists have found evidence suggesting that the Assyrians and Sumerians knew figs and incorporated them into their diets. Those figs were likely wild; the fruit wasn’t cultivated until ancient farmers grew them in Mesopotamia.
This Stuffed Figs and Goat Cheese recipe combines a few ancient ingredients into one sweet and savory treat. In Biblical times figs were picked straight from the tree, ripe and succulent. Cheese was made from the milk of goats that roamed the Judean hills. Dates were harvested from palm trees and enjoyed for their natural sweetness. Combine these three ingredients and you get one delicious appetizer, beautifully representative of the “Land of Milk and Honey.”
I have to warn you, these figs are addicting. I served them at a dinner gathering recently and they were a big hit. They’re all natural and gluten free. Enjoy!
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Beauty shots and styling by Bethany Nauert.
Stuffed Figs with Goat Cheese
Ingredients
- 12 fresh figs
- 4 ounces soft goat cheese for vegetarian use cheese with a vegetarian rennet
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/4 cup date syrup (you may substitute honey)
Instructions
- Purchase or make a batch of date syrup, also known as date honey or silan, in advance of this recipe for best flavor. Alternatively you may substitute regular honey.Preheat oven to broil. Trim off stems of figs and cut an "X" in the top of each fig 1/3 way through. Place the figs on a greased, parchment or silpat-lined sheet tray. If they are a little wobbly, you can shave a bit off the bottoms of the figs so they stand upright.
- Place goat cheese in a plastic or piping bag and massage with warm hands until softened. Cut a tip off one of the bottom corners of the bag and pipe the cheese into each fig, dividing your 4 oz. cheese evenly between the 12 figs.
- Lightly brush the figs with olive oil and sprinkle with a little salt and a generous amount of freshly cracked black pepper.
- Broil the figs for about 4 minutes or until you can see little brown bits on the goat cheese. Date honey or regular honey should be gently warmed in a small saucepan at this point, it should be easily pourable and warm but not hot.
- Remove figs from oven and drizzle with warm date honey.
- Serve warm or at room temperature.
Joyce says
Thank you for the stuffed figs with goat cheese recipe! Sooo good!!
Cheryl Van Esch says
I cannot access the recipe for Date honey on your site, the link in this Fig dish isn’t working for me, and doing a search on your site for the Date Honey just takes me to it’s history, no recipe. There is some kind of glitch in the website? ?
Tori Avey says
Hi Cheryl! The link hasn’t changed, not sure why it wasn’t working for you? Try this: https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/date-honey-syrup-silan/
Denise says
These were really good but I couldn’t find the recipe. So I stuffed the figs with a little goat cheese, drizzled honey over them and then broiled til I saw them with bits of brown. Served with a touch of good balsamic vinegar. Very good. Publix has Turkish fresh figs. Not cheap but very good.
Liz says
Fabulous! I served prosciutto with these and it was to die for! I’m thinking I’ll make a double batch next time and, if any are left over, I’ll put them in a food processor to use as a spread the next day. Yummy!
Billie Marsala says
They were out of fresh figs so I soaked dried figs from TJ in warm water to reconstitute them, then followed the directions. They were a hit!
Alice says
Simply delicious
Anastasia says
Love it!
Teri Roy says
I tried these with just warmed honey. Everything else according to recipe. Delicious isn’t a good enough word for these!
Robyn says
I have made this recipe many times now. By far the easiest and nicest appetizer ever. Thank you for this recipe. My family loves it every time I make it.
Rose Martin says
Hi Tory, what I really enjoyed is the bit of history, always interesting to remember things we have long forgotten.
I personally will try these with blue cheese and date honey. Maybe half with goats and the rest with the blue cheese, good to have a variety, and see what’s popular.
Jodi says
Hi
These figs look amazing! Has anyone made a day in advance?
Jodi
J says
I prepared these the day before T-giving and covered them In the frig with plastic wrap on the cookie sheet. Note, I added the S&P and olive oil just before broiling. I also used only fresh warmed honey. They were a hit.
Joe says
Just tried this recipe and was delicious , I will do it again and soon since I have several fig trees for fruit. Too bad I have no goats , ha
Rosemary says
Recipe really does sound so good & so yummy! I’m not that fortunate because I really don’t have any idea where I ‘mm find some fresh figs!! And don’t know anyone in Florida that goes them, either! ?
Manny Fernandez says
We just bought at PUBLIX BOGO they are great, I will definitely try this recipe this week end.
Thanks to all for the comments.
Manny
Faye Schreiber says
I just made these (for breakfast) and they are amazing. Be sure to use lots of pepper. Silan can be purchased – probably at a shop that sells Middle Eastern or Mediterranean foods – and does not have to be home made.
Shira says
Hi Tori,
Its apparently not fig season anymore 🙁 Would substituting fresh figs for packaged ones be OK?
Tori Avey says
Shira I have never tried this with packaged figs– they are significantly sweeter than regular figs and smaller, so they won’t be as easy to stuff. If you try it please let us know how they worked for you.
Amber says
Do you think Brie or Motzerella cheese would work? Thank you for all your amazing recipes!!!
Tori Avey says
Brie might be nice. I prefer something with a little more salt and tang to it like feta, personally. Enjoy! 🙂
Mercedes Medina says
Extraordinary!!
I would like you recipe for making date honey.
Thank you, I enjoy so much hearing from you.
Tori Avey says
Here is the link to the date honey recipe Mercedes: https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/date-honey-syrup-silan/
francoise says
Another option is to substitute a few drops of really good, old, balsamic vinegar for the date honey.
Ceci says
I agree. I was about to go searching for figs and balsamic, your comment was perfect, thanks
Arika M. says
Our market has some amazing figs right now. Definitely making this.
Ellie Elliott says
These would be the perfect appetizer for Thanksgiving! Thank you for sharing!
Sabrina La says
Drool