Grilled Honey Orange Figs With Mascarpone And Pistachios Food

FIGS WITH MASCARPONE AND HONEY

Steps:

• Wipe the figs with a clean kitchen towel and cut off the stems. Slice the figs in half and arrange them in a circle on a platter, overlapping them slightly. In the center, pile up the mascarpone.
• Pour the honey over the figs in a very thin stream (if necessary, heat the honey to thin it out). Serve immediately with thin sugar cookies.

HONEY GLAZED GRILLED FIG SALAD WITH FETA, PISTACHIO AND MIZUNA

Steps:

• Whisk together the vinegar, honey, orange juice and some salt and pepper to combine. Slowly whisk in the olive oil until emulsified. Set aside.
• Heat a charcoal or gas grill to high for direct grilling. Brush the figs with some olive oil, season with salt and pepper and grill, cut-side down, just until slightly charred. Remove to a plate.
• Toss the mizuna with some of the vinaigrette. Transfer the mizuna to a platter and arrange the figs over top. Sprinkle with the feta and pistachios and drizzle some of the remaining dressing over top. Serve at room temperature.

SWEET POLENTA CROSTINI WITH MASCARPONE, RASPBERRIES, PISTACHIOS, AND LAVENDAR HONEY

Steps:

• Prepare the polenta: Line an 8 by 4-inch loaf pan with plastic wrap and set aside.
• Bring the water to a rolling boil in a large pot. Add the salt, then gradually sprinkle in the cornmeal, stirring constantly to avoid lumps. Keep stirring after the last of the cornmeal has been added: the mixture will begin to thicken quite quickly. Reduce the heat to medium and cook the polenta for about 30 to 40 minutes, stirring frequently. Spoon a little of the polenta onto a plate and taste it: when it is no longer crunchy and granular, it's done.
• Scrape the polenta into the loaf pan, flattening the top and pressing the mass into a rough rectangle, ending halfway to two-thirds down the length of the pan. This sounds a little confusing, but you should now have a 2-inch-thick rectangle of polenta pressed into the loaf pan. It will be very stiff and have no trouble staying put. Cool the polenta to room temperature, then press a piece of plastic wrap onto the surface and refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours, or up to 3 days.
• No more that 2 or 3 hours before you plan to serve the dessert, remove the loaf pan from the refrigerator and unmold the polenta. With a long, thin-bladed knife, slice the loaf into 1/4-inch thick slices and cut each of these in half. You should end up with about 24 (2-inch) squares, 1/4-inch thick.
• Heat 2 tablespoons of butter and 1/2 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a large frying pan (non-stick is fine) over medium heat. When the foam subsides, add half of the polenta slices and fry about 4 minutes, turning once, until golden and crisp on both sides. Carefully transfer the slices to a platter lined with paper towels and sprinkle the slices with half of the sugar. Repeat with the remaining butter, oil, polenta, and sugar. Cool the sugared polenta slices to room temperature.
• To assemble the crostini, spoon the mascarpone into a piping bag fitted with a medium star tip (about 1/2-inch or so). Pipe a generous amount of mascarpone on each polenta square and arrange two or three raspberries on the cheese. Press some pistachio pieces around the berries into the cheese and drizzle the crostini with a little of the honey (a honey dripper or even a teaspoon dipped into the jar then waved over the squares works really well, don't even bother measuring the honey!). The finished crostini should be eaten as soon as possible, but can be kept covered at room temperature for a few hours.