The nice surprise of the summer:  our fig tree has produced a lot of lovely, sweet green figs!

We have always had a little fig tree, but in the past, it has never yielded much because it was basically buried by bamboo growing into our yard from the neighbors.  This spring, I got ambitious and really went after the bamboo, forcing it back to the other side of the fence and giving the fig tree a lot more space and sun.  And the little tree has really taken to its new freedom!  This box of about 2 kilos is only the start of the harvest as the tree is still full of unripe figs.

I made these into Fig-Vanilla Jam (see these older posts for the recipe and for a basic primer on jam-making) but I also look forward to eating them raw off the tree with slices of jambon de Bayonne…miam, miam.  Or what about with a nice runny goat’s milk cheese?

It’s a cliché, but a perfectly ripe melon and a perfectly dry-aged ham are an incomparable combination.  If you really want to gild the lilly, add a chiffonnade of fresh mint and serve with a sweet white wine from Jurançon, a dry sherry or even an off-dry sparkling wine.

The season for melons de Lectoure started a couple weeks ago but has really hit its stride this week. Not as well known as the Cavaillon melon from Provence, Lectoure melons come from the Gers, in the region around Toulouse.   This melon has been sitting on my dining room table for five days and is filling the room with its wonderful scent, meaning it is ready to eat.  The ham is, of course, jambon de Bayonne. Simple food really is the best!