Figs are one of those fruits that the global supermarket food chain has not seen fit to supply all year round...and thank goodness for that. I love the anticipation of that first fig of the season. The knowledge that my fig indulgence will be short-lived makes it all the more tantalising. So you can imagine how quickly my foot hit the brakes when I spotted a roadside stall selling figs for 50 cents a piece (my apologies to those beeping motorists who sped past on the highway).
I did have a small anxiety attack about what I would do with them. The recipe had to be simple, decadent and entirely delicious. I thought about wrapping them in swathes of prosciutto and slathering them with gorgonzola cheese before baking them in the oven...I could almost taste that cheesey, sweet and salty flavour combo. I also thought about some sort of tart concoction with a light flaky pastry providing the perfect accompaniment to a carmelised fig. But for my first figs of the season I wanted to really taste that fresh fruit flavour.
So after much deliberation, here it is...the perfect recipe for fresh fig fanatics (it's also a good recipe for people who like butter, honey and pancakes that defy gravity).
Ricotta Pancakes with Fresh Figs
250g ricotta
1/3 cup milk
75g plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 eggs, seperated
1 tbsp castor sugar
1tsp vanilla extract
4 fresh figs, sliced into wedges
50g butter
1/4 cup honey
extra butter for greasing the pancake pan
Make your honey caramel by heating the butter and honey until you have a sweet, runny liquid (only a couple of minutes). Keep warm while you make the pancakes.
Mix together ricotta, milk, flour, baking powder, egg yolks, castor sugar and vanilla extract. You want a thick batter. The amount of milk may depend on how wet your ricotta is. My ricotta was from a local dairy and was quite thick and firm, which meant I needed to add a few more splashes of milk. Supermarket versions of ricotta can contain quite a bit of liquid, in which case just add less milk. To test the thickness - scoop up some of the batter on your spoon and let it plop back into the bowl. The batter should fall off the spoon in big sticky gloops.
Beat your egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Put one spoonful of egg white into the batter and fold through with a large metal spoon. Then tip the rest of the egg whites in and continue to fold through until everything is evenly mixed.
Heat a small amount of butter in a pan and spoon in your pancake batter. Flip over when you see those big batter bubbles start to form. Once browned to your liking, pop the pancake into a warm oven while you fry and flip the rest of the pancakes.
Pile your pancakes into an oversized bowl. Scatter over your figs and pour over the honey caramel. Eat with a big spoon and lashings of cream...don't forget to breath (a good tip from someone who inhaled half a pile of pancakes before coming up for air).
Ahh I love pancakes. My favorite are blueberry pancakes (boring, I know) but these look yummy! I definitely want to add this to my meal planner: (http://www.springpadit.com/springpads/mealplanner/) You can add the recipe too (http://bit.ly/f9qrJ)!
Posted by: Alana @ springpad | March 02, 2009 at 12:41 AM
Oh Marion, your blog is beautiful! The photography is stunning.
I'm afraid my (quite pitiful compared to yours LOL) blog went by the wayside when I started reading for the upcoming semester.
Looking forward to meeting you in the VC Marion :)
Posted by: Angela | March 03, 2009 at 09:27 PM
Love your figs!
Posted by: MsGourmet | March 05, 2009 at 09:46 AM
Wow, gorgeous photos! Hooray for figs - I love this time of year :)
Posted by: Christie @ Fig & Cherry | March 09, 2009 at 02:05 PM
Marion, These pancakes look great! Lou, Alice and I are going to make them on the weekend! I will let you know how they go! The new recipes look great!!! Amanda
Posted by: Amanda | March 10, 2009 at 08:57 PM
I've been thinking about making ricotta pancakes for a while now... and I think you might have just tipped me over the edge!
Posted by: Chocolate Shavings | March 11, 2009 at 11:46 AM
Hi Amanda,
I hope you ladies enjoy the pancakes as much as Tim and I did. Pass on some big kisses for Lou from me :-)
Posted by: Hedonistic Hostess | March 11, 2009 at 11:46 AM
Oh wow, those figs look so gorgeous! I wish they were available in my area right now.
Posted by: Jillian | March 12, 2009 at 01:00 AM
oh my!... I think I need to make these next weekend... mmm yum!
Posted by: Angie | March 15, 2009 at 05:44 PM
Yeah, it is now clear: And then I just did not understand where is the link with the title:
http://www.kyrosity.com/forum/index.php?showuser=51074
Posted by: touccermergit | January 21, 2010 at 10:31 AM