Heaven on a plate!

While I haven’t always loved arugula, I’m a fan now! It’s quickly becoming my go-to green!

First off, it’s eats well. Do you know what I mean?

You can stick your fork into an arugula salad and more often than not, you’ll have yourself a pretty perfect bite! You can’t say that about every salad.

For this scrumptious salad there are a multiple shining stars.

Certainly the seasonal fresh figs bring a beautiful sweetness and are gorgeous on the plate. And Walnuts add great texture and a nice buttery flavor.

But the chickpeas and gorgonzola are fighting for top honors.

I believe I have under utilized garbanzo beans. Obviously they’re the star of our Classic Hummus, but they absolutely transform this salad from a “foo-foo pretty on the plate” to a satisfying meal.

Okay maybe light lunch, but nonetheless, chickpeas are where it’s at.

Lastly the gorgonzola. We haven’t discussed the white balsamic vinaigrette yet, but the two are dreamy together.

I do believe my cooking reached a new level when I discovered the power of a good vinaigrette. Whether it’s a nice fresh herby variety or one with a subtle and smooth finish, vinaigrettes are our friend! If you’re looking for inspiration here’s the link to our Dressing & Marinade Recipes.

From an ingredient standpoint, white balsamic vinaigrette is about as basic as you can get. Olive oil, white balsamic, honey or maple syrup, salt & pepper. From a flavor perspective there are loads of ways to mix it up. Hop over to my White Balsamic Vinaigrette recipe to see how I change it up!

One of our local restaurants serves a similar salad but with pears. I may have to recreate that Autumn-Thyme salad this fall.

Just the right tang from blue cheese and white balsamic, mellowed slightly by the creamy chickpeas. I LOVE this salad. You’ve got to try it!

Don’t forget to follow us @LemonyThyme on Instagram and Facebook! And check out our latest TikTok videos and Pinterest boards too!

All my best,
xo Libby

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Fig & Walnut Arugula Salad with Chickpeas & Gorgonzola

The ingredients in this Fig & Walnut Arugula Salad with Chickpeas & Gorgonzola play so nicely together. Heaven on a plate!

Course Salad

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

For the Salad

• 5 ounces arugula
• 6 fresh figs, stems removed quartered
• 1 cup shelled walnuts
• 1 cup gorgonzola cheese crumbled
• 1 cup canned chickpeas rinsed and drained

For the White Balsamic Vinaigrette

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup white balsamic vinaigrette or more to taste
• 2 Tablespoons honey or maple syrup
• salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

For Salad

• Place all salad ingredients in a large bowl.

For White Balsamic Vinaigrette

• Combine all vinaigrette ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake well. Dress the salad lightly, then toss. Add more vinaigrette to taste. Store unused vinaigrette in refrigerator for up to a month.

The post Fig & Walnut Arugula Salad with Chickpeas & Gorgonzola appeared first on Lemony Thyme.

Such a sweet way to incorporate my recent fresh fig score!

And boy are they delicious! The tender crumb is sweet and buttery and the jammy fig layer has a nice hint of lemon.

I wanted to keep this recipe simple and easy to recreate, so I let my food processor do most of the work. Here’s how we break it down.

You’ll have your Crumble and you’ll have your Fig Filling. Both are made in the food processor.

For the Crumble

• Flour, sugar, butter, and baking soda go into the bowl of a food processor
• Pulse until well combined
• Spread half of the mixture in a buttered parchment lined 8″x8″ baking dish
• Pour remaining mixture into a bowl and reserve
• Wipe food processor bowl clean

For the Fig Filling

• Fresh figs, lemon zest, sugar and flour go into the bowl of the food processor
• Process on low for one minute until figs are well blended
• Spread fig mixture over crumble crust

For the Topping

• Take the remaining crumble topping and squeeze handfuls to form clumps
• Place clumps on top of fig filling
• Continue until all crumbs are used
• Bake at 375 degrees F. for 60-65 minutes until lightly golden brown
• Allow to cool completely before cutting

Fresh Fig Crumble Bars have a coffee cake feel about them and are perfect for breakfast. I actually shared them with my neighbors one evening and they were a yummy evening sweet treat.

I’m already thinking about how I can incorporate other fresh seasonal product into crumble bars. Peach Crumb Bars anyone?

If you love figs like we do check out our Prosciutto Wrapped Mascarpone Stuffed Figs of Love!

Are there recipes that remind you of a favorite vacation that you’d like to see us recreate? I’d love for you to comment below. Your feedback is so important to me (and keeps the recipe love fresh).

Don’t forget to follow us @LemonyThyme on Instagram and Facebook! And check out our latest TikTok videos and Pinterest boards too!

All my best,
xo Libby

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Fresh Fig Crumble Bars

Boy are these Fresh Fig Crumble Bars delicious! The tender crumb is sweet and buttery and the jammy fig layer has a nice hint of lemon.

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Keyword Baked Goods, Fresh Figs

Servings 8

Author Libby with Lemony Thyme

Ingredients

For the Crumble

• 3/4 cup cold unsalted butter cut into cubes
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

For the Fig Filling

• 8 ounces fresh figs stems removed
• 2 Tablespoons all purpose flour
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 1 zest of 1 lemon about 2 teaspoons

Instructions

For the Crumble

• Preheat oven to 375° F. Spray an 8"x8" baking dish with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper and spray again.
• Place the crumble ingredients into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until butter and flour are incorporated well. Pour half of the mixture into bottom of prepared baking dish. Pour remaining mixture into a bowl and wipe out food processor bowl.

For the Fig Filling

• Add Fig Filling ingredients to the food processor bowl. Blend on low speed for 1 minute. Pour fig mixture over crumble base and spread out to edges.
• Take the remaining crumb mixture and squeeze a handful at a time so clumps form. Place them on top of fig layer. Repeat until all remaining crumb topping is used. Bake for 60-65 minutes until lightly golden on top. Allow to cool completely before slicing.

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

The post Fresh Fig Crumble Bars By Popular Demand appeared first on Lemony Thyme.