Tuesday, August 4, 2009

TFF - Greek Yogurt with a Fig, Date and Honey Swirl

Every once in awhile, my little small-town grocery does something that makes me very happy. Kind of like the time they finally started carrying fresh(er) mozzarella. No, not the real deal, floating in water, but the vacuum sealed balls are better than nothing.

Friday afternoon when I was browsing the store, looking for a few items to fill in the gap between last week's dinners and this week's, I came to a dead stop in front of the dairy case. "Dost mine eyes deceive me?" No, it is not an illusion....right here, in my quaint little market, was a display of FAGE greek yogurt. If you have never had greek yogurt, and you often think to yourself, "Come on, what's the big deal?" when you hear chefs on Food Network talking about it.....well, you've just got to taste for yourself.
Its like the difference between Jell-o cheesecake, and New York cheesecake. Fat Free Sour Cream and Creme Fraiche. More expensive, too? You're darn right it is. So, no, I wouldn't use it for ALL my yogurt needs, but there is a Tyler Florence recipe I've been very intrigued by and I just knew that even though the recipe says you can substitute strained plain yogurt in lieu of greek yogurt, that it would not be the same. And I was right....

This unctuous concoction is like a little mouth full of heaven....superbly creamy, decadently sweet, with little bits of rich date and fig, and a crunchy crumble of toasted nuts on top. Much more substantial than regular yogurts, this was a perfect treat for my breakfast at work today, and with a minimum of effort. The swirl was like a little treasure trove of candy hiding in a milky cloud. I'm seriously considering putting it in my little popsicle molds and making frozen yogurt treats to last all summer! If you love yogurt....I don't care if you've never tried figs before, you are gonna LOVE this! Come on over to Tyler Florence Fridays this week and see all the lovely dishes, including this one, which is my entry for this week.
Greek Yogurt with a Fig, Date and Honey Swirl
Recipe by Tyler Florence
Show: Food 911
Episode: Hail to Greece!Ingredients
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup almonds
1/4 cup pine nuts
***I just used 3/4 cup of a can of deluxe mixed nuts
6 figs, fresh or dried, cut into quarters (I used dried, because I have never, I repeat NEVER seen fresh figs anywhere in this region.)
6 dates, pitted and chopped
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup water
1 lemon, juiced
1 cinnamon stick
2 cups Greek yogurt
Mint leaves for garnish (yeah, anyone need some mint? It is taking over my garden....)

Directions:
If you can't find Greek yogurt, drain regular yogurt, refrigerated, overnight through cheesecloth. Toast the nuts in a saute pan over medium heat until they become fragrant. Put the nuts onto a plate and set aside; when cool enough to handle, chop them roughly. In a small saucepan over medium heat, add the figs, dates, honey, water, lemon juice, and cinnamon stick. Cook for about 10 minutes until fruit is soft. Set aside and let it cool slightly; remove the cinnamon stick. Place the yogurt in a big bowl. Spoon the warm fruit onto the yogurt and gently swirl the fruit through the yogurt. Sprinkle on the nuts and garnish with mint leaves. Serve immediately.


You want some, don't you?

14 comments:

Heather S-G said...

I do....I really, really do!! I love figs and pretty much everything else in it! Delicious choice :D

Kim said...

Great choice for TFF this week! I've seen this recipe and also wanted to try it, sounds and looks delish!! - Boy do I want some!

NKP said...

That looks really good! I wouldn't be surprised if Deb bookmarks it, she has had some nice fresh figs in her area lately. I have only seen them here once, and generally buy the dried ones too. I love the dried fig's chewiness though, yum!

Arlene Delloro said...

Haven't seen this Tyler recipe. I love Fage yogurt, even the total 0% one is delish. Will try this as soon as I can find some lovely figs.

Karine said...

I love yogurt and I would love to try your recipe! Maybe you are going to laugh: I live in a big city with many people from greece and strangely, I have never seen a container of greek yogurt... maybe I don't look correctly :(

Joanne said...

That looks, basically, like one of the most delicious things I have ever seen. I LOVE greek yogurt! I was so happy when BJ's started carrying Chobani because it made it slightly less expensive. And dried figs - the BEST.

pam said...

Oh my gosh. I am totally copying you next week. I've got to have this!

Donna-FFW said...

This looks over the top delicious. I love evrything you put into it. I want this for dessert, breakfast, lunch, anytime, it looks so damn good!

Kim said...

I just made this same yogurt this morning. It's got to be the creamiest stuff ever!

Also, I just posted my entry for your giveaway/contest over on my blog today. I'm on the most artistic person, but you'll get the idea. The carrot flowers were put on the end of sprigs of rosemary and they looked like really pretty little orange flowers with rosemary stems.

heatherisathome said...

You totally had me laughing when I read your post. I could envision you doing a happy dance, right there in that little small-town grocery store.

Great job this week! Looks delicious, and I rarely ever do anything sweet.

Unknown said...

this looks yummy! i've never had figs before, but this recipe sure makes me want to try them!

Deb in Hawaii said...

I have this recipe tabbed and after seeing yours, I hope I can find more figs. Fage yogurt is my favorite--so good!

Anonymous said...

Oh. I want this. Badly enough to hike out to the tree and see if the figs ever got ripe. Or drive around until I find a tree that has ripe figs on it. Greek yogurt is one thing I can get, and this looks luscious. Beautiful presentation!!

Jenny said...

That does look delectable. Glad you used the dried figs cause those I know I like, but I can't figure out how you pick a fresh one.