Savour the flavours of the season with this fresh fig arugula salad with blackberries, goat cheese and walnuts. This post includes tips for how to tell when a fig is ripe.
This Fresh Fig Arugula Salad is so pretty, seriously tasty, and packed full of healthy greens, berries, nuts, cheese and FIGS!
The figs on my tiny two-year-old tree are ripening and the branches are bending over with the weight of these sweet juicy morsels. I picked enough to make this beautiful fresh fig arugula salad and some crostini for an appetizer and I'm hoarding the rest while I consider all the choices I have to use this precious fruit.
Last year at this time, I made this dessert of fresh figs poached in blackberry wine so that one is high on my list of options.
If you've never had fresh figs before, you're missing out on one of life's little pleasures. Fresh figs are luscious. When you bite into their slightly chewy smooth skin, the inside bursts and fills your mouth with a delicate sweetness. While some people find the seeds in dried figs annoying, fresh figs have none of that nonsense.
I love this simple appetizer (or dessert!) of Fresh Figs with Goat Cheese and Maple Walnuts.
If you're wondering how to tell if a fig is ripe
Here are some tips.
If you're lucky enough to pick figs fresh from a tree, look for the ones that are just beginning to droop from a branch. When they ripen, they get heavy with juice, and their small stem begins to bend.
If you're buying them from your farmer's market or a store, look for ones with smooth, unblemished skin. They should be slightly firm. Don't choose the ones that are too soft, or too hard.
Fresh figs have a short shelf life and bruise easily, so they need to be stored in the refrigerator and used within a day or two.
It's blackberry season here too, and the bushes are so loaded this year, the berries are falling to the ground as I pick them. Blackberries have one of the highest antioxidant levels of all fruit and their high tannin content can help to reduce intestinal inflammation. A superfood, right on our doorstep, and free!
On our way home from our hike up the mountain today, it seemed everyone had the same idea: the roadsides and fields were dotted with people, buckets in hand, picking this free fruit.
How to make this Fresh Fig Arugula Salad
I made this salad with arugula, because I love its peppery taste and it provides a perfect contrast to sweet fruits and berries. I also added goat cheese and walnuts, but you could easily substitute your favourite cheese and nuts. I'm sure that salty parmesan or pecorino with pecans would be a great flavour choice too.
Arrange freshly washed and dried arugula leaves on a platter (or in individual bowls), add teaspoon-sized dollops of goat cheese, fresh blackberries and chopped walnuts.
Toss it all with a simple honey-balsamic vinaigrette just before serving and savour the tastes of summertime!
I highly recommend.
Fresh Fig Arugula Salad with Blackberries
Ingredients
- 4 cups freshly washed and dried arugula leaves
- 4 to 6 fresh figs washed, stems removed and quartered or sliced in 1/8ths
- 1 cup fresh blackberries
- 1/2 cup goat cheese
- 1/2 cup walnuts coarsely chopped
Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- coarse sea salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a small jar or bowl, whisk together the Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette ingredients. Set aside to allow flavours to blend. Set aside.
- On a serving platter, arrange arugula leaves. Top with quartered figs, blackberries, and teaspoon-sized lumps of goat cheese. Sprinkle with walnuts.
- Just before serving, drizzle Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette over all.
Nutrition
More Recipes with Fabulous Figs
Grilled Salmon Salad with Blueberries and Figs
Thalia @ butter and brioche says
What a delicious salad. I never have thought to add blackberries to a salad before so I definitely need to try it out!
Diane Galambos says
Elaine, that looks beautiful and I am sure it will taste great. I have a great place where I buy arugula - sometimes the kind packaged in plastic is not so great. Now will just add blackberries and that yummy dressing! Thx!
Flavour & Savour says
Thanks Diane! I have arugula going crazy in my garden right now. I love being able to combine things that grow in my back yard and make something delicious with them. Thanks for stopping by!
Melissa says
How beautiful is this salad!! I think I have found a new summer favourite! Thank you for sharring!
Flavour & Savour says
Thanks Melissa! It's one of my summer favourites, too.
Colleen Milne says
Such a lovely salad! I love figs and blackberries, so i will definitely try this.
Flavour & Savour says
Thanks Colleen. I hope you get a chance to make it. It's delicious . . . and it's pretty too:)
Dana says
This looks wonderful, Elaine! I love love love figs, let alone the idea of figs in my salad! I truly think the perfect salad has fruits, goat/feta cheese, and walnuts. This is RIGHT up my alley 🙂
Flavour & Savour says
We think alike in the food department!! I'm crazy about fresh figs too. My tree is loaded this year! Thanks for commenting.
Sean says
I think one of the nicest things about the ephemeral and seasonal summer fruits is how special they make a dish. You can, of course, buy blackberries all year, but they're seldom very good. And figs are spectacular only for such a short period of time. You put them in something simple and fresh like this, and it just feels special. Great job.
Flavour & Savour says
Oh, you are so right, Sean. Blackberries from a plastic clamshell package just cannot compare to those picked from the bush and popped in your mouth on a hot summer day! And juicy ripe figs right from the tree---don't get me started . . . Thanks for stopping by!
Justine @ JustineCelina.com says
I love the sound of this gorgeous figgy salad, Elaine! It sounds perfect for this time of year. Thanks for the inspiration -- I'm going to pop over to the farmers market this week and grab some figs! Have a great Sunday.
Flavour & Savour says
Thanks, Justine! It's truly a summertime salad! Happy Sunday to you, too!
Kelly Cohen Ohnona says
looks so good and refreshing!!
Flavour & Savour says
Thanks Kelly! I love the colours in this salad!
Elaine says
Adding blackberries to a salad is genius! Thank you for sharing this method - I will try it, too, now! 🙂
Flavour & Savour says
Thanks! I love the contrast in colour in this salad. Thanks for stopping by!