I’ve been wanting to cook with figs for about 10 months now. But like every fresh food item, there is a season. And how excited was I when I came across fresh figs in the produce section of Publix the other day. With a dinner party on the schedule, I planned to kick off my meal with this simple, but decadent appetizer.

Oven Roasted Figs with Prosciutto

Ingredients

• 12 Fresh Figs
• 12 Prosciutto Slices
• 12 Fresh Basil Leaves
• Olive Oil
• Salt & Pepper

Optional

• Brie or Goat Cheese
• 24 Crostini

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Cut the stems off of the figs, and slice them in half length wise. With each slice of prosciutto, cut them in half so that you have long strips. Take each strip of prosciutto and wrap it around the figs. Brush the pieces with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the prosciutto starts to get crispy. When slightly cooled, place a fresh basil leaf on top of each fig. Enjoy warm or room temperature.

Another twist on this appetizer is to serve the fig & prosciutto on a crostini with goat cheese or slices of brie cheese. I did not roast the prosciutto on this appetizer, but I did cook the figs and melt the cheese on the crostini.