Figs and Goat cheese salad

This salad will make you want to forget all those other salads before this one. A simple combination that makes fireworks. Like in the Ratatouille movie, when the rat melt cheese on the mushroom with the help of a lightning bolt… Some ingredients are just much better coupled and this is a good example. A melted goat cheese on figs pieces, walnuts, cherry tomatoes with a honey dressing and an extra balsamic cream top make it extra special.

Where I live, close by the Pyrenees mountain chain, they do some great goat cheeses! Although we don’t get to see them eating cheese in many dishes, they prefer the cheese by itself, as a Tapa or mostly to start a meal, contrary to finish a meal like in France. They do such a varieties of cow, sheep and goat cheeses and often make a mix of all those to make a single cheese.

I, on the other hand, love to mix up cheese with my salads, it’s my weakness… In this particular case, I’ve used a goat cheese from the Pyreneens. A light flavoured, soft kind, so you can easily replace it with the “goat cheese of your choice”.

It’s late june, the beginning of the figs season, down here in Spain. Those delicate fruits are delicious, they contain 80% of water and that is why, I slightly baked them before… to release some of that water out, and give the fig an extra kick of flavor. I know it’s not always easy to find those fruits… they are extremely fragile and don’t do well with long distance transportation. But if you are lucky enough to find some! Jump on them and try this salad. You’ll thank me later.

So let’s make this heavenly combination of vitamins!

Figs and Goat cheese salad

Makes 2 portions

Ingredients

• 4 fresh figs cut into 2
• 4 thick slices of your favourite goat cheese
• Romaine Lettuce
• Cherry tomatoes
• Walnut
• Balsamic vinegar cream

Salad dressing

• 1/2 tbsp of honey
• 5 tbsp of olive oil
• 2 tbsp of sherry vinegar (or cider vinegar)
• 1 tsp of white wine mustard (or your favorite kind)
• salt, pepper

Directions

1. In a bowl mix all the dressing ingredients and mix well
2. Add the goat cheese on the figs and cook in the oven for just a 4 minutes at 180°C (350F) *optional
3. Assemble the salad
4. Top with the dressing, walnuts and the balsamic cream

Enjoy!