It’s not too difficult to come up with a dessert for a special occasion, most times. You just need to figure out how special the occasion if for which you want to serve the dessert, how much time you have to spend on it, and then look for a recipe that is doable and that you have the ingredients for.
I find it’s much more difficult to find something to serve as a dessert for regular at-home meals. I generally tend to make dessert for us on weekends, usually on Saturday or Sundays. A lot of people in India, including older school children, have 6-day weeks though a lucky few need to go in only on 5 days a week. So weekdays mean a very hurried breakfast, carry-along lunches and dinner is the time for a freshly cooked and warm meal.
So in our home, it’s the weekends when we have lunch and dinner that’s a little more elaborate and definitely the time to serve dessert. I’m usually looking for a dessert that is a bit “healthier” than the average idea of a dessert which is all about sugar and fat which is definitely what the doctor did not order for us. The problem with “healthier” desserts is that not everyone always likes them.
And that’s why I find it often a challenge to make and serve a dessert that ticks all the boxes and finds that balance between taste and being good for the health! This dessert of Baked Figs With Honey-Scented Yogurt And Granola does tick those boxes and is great on taste too.
It’s a fruit based dessert for one thing and baking the fresh figs improves the flavour. You can grill the figs if you prefer. There’s no added fat, just the goodness of yogurt and a little bit of sweet from the fruit itself, some honey and a little brown sugar. The home-made Granola is mostly oats and almonds with a little egg white to bind it together a bit.
The creaminess of the Honeyed Yogurt, the juicy Baked Figs, the crunch of the Granola and the spice combination make for a really light and satisfying dessert. You could even serve this for a weekend brunch. Me, I could make a whole meal out of this!
This recipe is adapted from Cooking Light.
Baked Figs With Honey-Scented Yogurt And Granola (GF) & The Winner Of The "Naturally Sweet & Gluten-Free Giveaway
Ingredients
For the granola:
- 1 cup oats old - fashioned rolled
- 1/3 cup almonds chopped
- 1 egg white
- 1/4 tsp vanilla
- 2 tbsps brown sugar
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1/4 tsp salt divided
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg finely grated
- 2 tbsps honey
For the baked figs:
- 8 or 9 quarters figs fresh , cut into
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 2 tsps honey
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
For the honey-yogurt:
- 3 cups yogurt plain thick (Greek style)
- 2 to 3 tbsps honey
Instructions
- Start with making the granola. You can do this ahead and store it till you need it.
- Put the egg white and vanilla extract in a medium sized bowl. Whisk together until the egg becomes foamy. Fold the oats and sliced almonds into the egg white. Then sprinkle the sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt over this, and fold in till mixed. Lastly fold in the honey.
- Spread the granola mixture evenly into a thin layer on a greased foil lined baking tray. Bake it at 150C (300F) for about 25 minutes, stirring it once in between baking. Take the granola out when done, and let it cool for about 5 minutes in the tray. Then loosen it and let it cool completely. Store till required.
- Bake the figs next. To do this, combine the honey, vanilla, cinnamon and salt in a bowl. Pour this over the figs and lightly stir so the figs are coated properly. Place the figs cut sides face up, in a single layer on a baking tray. Bake them at 180C (350F) for about 10 minutes or till the fig juice starts to bubble. Take the tray out of the oven and let the figs cool down completely. At this point you can refrigerate the figs as they are for a day. Cover the baking tray with cling wrap before refrigerating.
- To serve, combine the yogurt with the honey and spoon half a cup of this into each serving bowl. Divide the granola equally between the serving bowls, sprinkling it over the yogurt. Divide the figs between the bowls arranging it over the granola and serve.
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