Dip them in chocolate ganache, of course! Why? What do you do with fresh figs?

It is definitely fig season and if you only know figs from the dried kind — or even worse, Newtons — you are in for a treat. Fresh figs are sweet, juicy and altogether luscious. Lending themselves to both sweet and savory preparations, fresh figs are the fruit you need to be cooking with right now. The season for fresh figs is short and fleeting, so when you see these beauties at your grocery store, do not hesitate. Pick up a few pints and bring them home!

When you see figs in the grocery store, they are most commonly the deep purple ones. These are Black Mission figs. With their jewel-like exterior and pale, rosy interior, Black Mission figs are the beauty queens of the fig world. They are characterized by their earthy sweetness. I also sometimes see the pale yellow Calimyrna figs which have a nuttier, buttery flavor. All figs are incredibly nutritious and a good source of fiber, potassium and calcium. Because figs are not something you see all year long, like apples, they can be a fun, new way to get your family to eat more fruit.

One of the reasons I enjoy eating figs is because they are an ancient food with a storied legacy. Both the ancient Greeks and ancient Romans revered fig trees are symbols of abundance, fertility and sweetness. Early Olympic athletes used figs as a training food and the Greeks forbid the export of the best-quality figs. Figs even have a long history in the United States — Spanish missionaries introduced figs to what is now California in the 1500′s. Mission figs got their name from the San Diego Mission where priests first planted this variety in 1769. Today nearly all of the figs grown in America still come from California.

When a fruit is pricey, as fresh figs can be — I have seen them sold for between $3 to $5 for a small pint — we can be reluctant to take a chance on buying it without a solid plan for how best to use it. But I urge you to try fresh figs before they are gone for the season. Don’t over-think it. These little gems are not complicated. You can eat them straight, halve them in a salad, or even slice them onto your sandwich at lunch. I must confess that I often just eat bread and cheese for lunch and sliced fresh figs are a perfect accompaniment to a cheese tray.

Last year at this time, I suggested two uses for fresh figs: stuffed with bleu cheese as an appetizer or roasted on a pizza with bleu cheese, arugula and a Balsamic drizzle. This year, to my repertoire of fig recipes, I added a savory  galette with caramelized onions, bleu cheese and a Balsamic glaze. It was even better than the pizza! You may be sensing that I like to pair figs with salty, sharp Bleu cheese. That’s certainly true, but other cheeses, like fresh goat cheese or a sweeter cheese like marscapone, make a good pairing as well.

But there is truly no need to gussy figs up with a lot of ingredients. If you want an elegant yet easy way to eat fresh figs and serve them to company, try dipping them in  chocolate ganache. Chocolate-dipped figs are stunning to look at and taste like a rare indulgence.

You may find yourself with some leftover ganache after dipping your pint of figs – try not to be too angry at me. When we have leftover chocolate ganache, I just let my kids go nuts dipping things into it: cookies, dried fruits, berries, even marshmallows. There are worse ways to get them to eat fruit. And cookies.