Comment:
No fruit, wild or store bought, has been preserved in Louisiana
more often than figs. My grandmother was an expert at preserving
figs, and I can't remember a day that a jar of her specialty wasn't
sitting in the center of our kitchen table.
Ingredients:
1 gallon figs
12 cups sugar
1 quart water
4 lemon slices
Method:
Sort figs and remove any that are overripe or blemished. Wash figs
well in cold, running water. Bring a pot of water to a boil, drop
in figs, remove from heat and allow to stand 3 minutes. Quickly
remove and drain. The hot water will help set color in fruit. In
a 2-gallon, heavy-bottomed saucepot, combine sugar and water and
bring to a rolling boil. Stir constantly until sugar is melted and
syrup is formed. Add lemon slices then gently place figs into boiling
liquid. Reduce heat to medium and cook figs 2½ hours or until
transparent. During cooking process, shake pot gently. Stirring
will mash fruit. Using a slotted spoon, scoop figs into hot, sterilized
jar then top with syrup. Leave ¼-inch headspace in jar. Wipe
syrup from rim then tightly cover and seal. Place jars in a hot
water bath and simmer approximately 10 minutes. Remove, cool, label
and store for later use. NOTE: Figs may be left overnight in syrup
to plump prior to packing in jars. Should you decide to do this,
fill jars with fruit and syrup, seal and place in a boiling water
bath approximately 20 minutes.
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