Fig Season

Summer may be coming to an end but Fig Season has just begun. That's good news for us all, especially my little sister. When you eat a ripe fig, there are few fruits that can beat it, if at all. A ripe fig is luscious, sweet, beautiful in color and is delicious fresh or dried. But my favorite is Fig Jam. My sister always has some store bought jam on-hand and it's a perfect accompaniment with any cheese platter, especially one with goat cheese. Here is a homemade recipe to take advantage of the fig harvest this fall.

Fig Jam

5 pounds fresh figs, chopped

6 cups of sugar

3/4 cup of water

1/2 cup of lemon juice

To prepare chopped figs: Cover figs with boiling water. Let stand 10 minutes. Drain, stem, and chop figs.

Combine figs, sugar and 1/4 cup of water in a large sauce pot. Bring slowly to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Cook rapidly until thick. Stir frequently to prevent sticking. Add lemon juice and cook 1 minute longer. Pour hot into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space. Adjust caps. Process 15 minutes on a boiling water bath. Yields about 5 pints.