I have gotten more than 50 little figs off my Chicago Hardy fig tree so far this year. They're a little smaller than a golf ball, but gorgeous and sweet and I'm so excited that I can grow figs here!
I knew I'd need at least 40 for this recipe, so as they ripened, I chopped them up and froze them. Worked like a charm and I think they were sweeter coming out of the freezer than fresh.
Notes: I started with this recipe from Food.com. The original recipe called for 2 cups of honey, but unless you're using really, really mild honey [not easily available anywhere], the honey totally takes over the flavor. I wanted fig jam, not fig flavored honey. So, here's what I did:
Fig, Honey and Walnut Jam
www.rurification.com
3 cups chopped figs [About 40 Chicago Hardy figs, stems removed]
1 cup honey
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
1 cup chopped walnuts
Directions:
Put figs, lemon juice and honey in a wide bottom saucepan. Bring to boil, turn down the heat and simmer until thick. 45 minutes or so. I cooked until it started sheeting off the spatula. Add walnuts and simmer for another 15 minutes or so. Put in jars with clean lids. Store in refrigerator. Yield: 2 pints.
[I processed my jars of jam for 10 minutes to can it, but I'm not a canning expert so this is me not telling you what to do, but only what I did.]