Nutrition

Falling for Figs

WORDS RACHEL HART

As one of the first crops to ever be cultivated, figs have long been loved for their taste, texture and nutrition.

While in New Zealand they are a luxury, selling for about a dollar a pop, in the Mediterranean figs are so common they’re nicknamed the ‘poor man’s food’. Either way, the fruit boasts an almost art-like interior that is packed to the brim with healthpromoting properties. Hidden within the leathery green or purple skin are hundreds of tiny chewy seeds set amongst a vibrant pink flesh. These seeds are high in fibre and this, along with the fruit’s prebiotic properties, make the fig a superstar when it comes to supporting your digestive health. And forget milk or cheese, figs are also particularly good for your bones, containing four bonesupporting minerals: calcium, magnesium, potassium and phosphorus. With just two fresh figs making up one serving of fruit, it’s easy to dose up on plenty of nutrients when these beauties are in season. In New Zealand, we have over 70 varieties of figs coming in all sorts of shapes, sizes and colours. While they can be harvested between February and April, they’re still not widely available commercially, so you’ll have better luck sourcing the fruit if you know someone with a backyard fig tree. Better yet, plant one yourself! Figs do well in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty’s climate, making for an excellent gardening experiment. They’re hardy in winter, tolerating temperatures as low as minus ten, and thrive in the warm late summer weather our regions offer. If you’re new to the wonderful world of figs, there’s plenty that you can do with this striking, albeit slightly intimidating, fruit. First and foremost, they are delicious on their own. Since their delicate texture means figs have an exceptionally short shelf-life, just pop one in your mouth as soon as you pluck it from the tree or pay for it at the farmer’s market. If any make it home, fresh figs make for an elegant addition to an autumn cheeseboard—slice them in half and they’ll add a splash of colour to their neighbouring cheeses and crackers. They also make for a sophisticated antipasto, simply wrap one in prosciutto for a salty-meets-sweet snack or pair them with a wedge of blue cheese, a drizzle of honey and a sprinkling of crushed walnuts. If you have your own tree or manage to get your hands on a larger quantity of them, figs make great preserves in the form of jams, chutneys and spiced preserves. When dried, figs transform from a beautiful swan into an ugly duckling. Though the shrivelled brown fruit isn’t much to look at, dried figs are tasty, healthy and far more readily available and affordable than their fresh counterpart. They work wonders in muesli, in baking or just eaten as is. There are endless ways to enjoy the beautiful and nutritious fig, just make sure you do it sooner rather than later—it’s truly a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it kind of fruit!

Rachel Hart

Hailing from Canada, Rachel has fallen in love with life in the beautiful Bay of Plenty where she is a freelance writer with a passion for healthy food. She splits her time between telling people’s stories, creating web content and experimenting in the kitchen.