[upbeat curious music] - Next on "The Key Ingredient", we're getting a little figgy with it as we explore wonderful ways to enjoy fresh figs.

We head to Ocracoke Island on the gorgeous outer banks for a taste of fig history.

So, when they're coming in hot and heavy, are you picking once a day, twice a day.

- [Paul] When it's prime time, about every day.

- [Sheri] And we'll bake a prize-winning fig cake with a baker whose family has lived here for nine generations.

Now, I just whisk these together.

- Yes, whisk those together.

- Okay.

All right.

I love that this cake does not need a mixer.

I'm Sheri Castle.

I write cookbooks, I write for food magazines, I cook, I teach, and I collect stories and my favorite stories are the ones behind our best loved home recipes.

Can you eat just rice like this?

- You could try.

- All right.

Here we go.

Oh, that's awesome.

I will go out and explore from the ground up, the best ingredients that go into some of our most beloved family recipes.

It's all about the food, the flavors, and finding the key ingredient.

[gentle upbeat music] We ferry over to Ocracoke Island, famous, not only for its wild beauty, but also for an amazing variety of figs that flourish in the sand and salty air.

Today, we get to learn from local experts about what makes the history of Ocracoke figs so special.

[upbeat music] - [Paul] Hey, Sheri.

- Paul.

Paul, it's Sheri Castle.

How are you?

- I'm well.

How are you?

- I'm good.

Somebody told me you were picking figs this morning.

Is that true or is that just a rumor?

- Yeah.

Let's go try it.

- Let's go try it.

You know I've never picked a fig, I've never picked an Ocracoke fig.

Are they different from flatland figs?

- Yep, they are.

- All right, go show me one.

Go show me one.

[upbeat music continues] All right, so this thing is covered.

So, tell me what I'm looking for when I need a ripe fig that's ready to pick.

- This one right there.

- [Sheri] Okay.

- These two of both have swelled up just enough and you touch it and it's got just a bit of softness to it.

- All right.

Have a look at that and they start tilting down just the least a little bit, don't they?

- [Paul] Yeah, then just twist it.

- Okay.

All right.

Here we go.

My first fig.

- [Paul] There you go.

- By golly, look at this!

So, you got us a bucket here.

I'm gonna hold the buckes.

So, find me another one.

That was fun.

So, when they're coming in hot and heavy, I mean, are you picking once a day, twice a day?

How often do y'all pick when it's high season?

- When it's prime time, about every day.

- And how like, I know there's different sizes, but like off of one this size here, about how many pounds of figs might you get in a good year?

- I don't know.

This tree right here could probably easily produce 100 pounds.

- 100 pounds of figs.

- Or maybe more.

- So, let's find me another one to pick.

- Well, here's one right here.

- Ken, look at that, how different that is from the one next to it.

I mean, it's like it's trying to help us out.

- They could almost go from like this overnight to like that the next day.

- That's amazing, from a good rain or something.

So, what kind of fig is this?

- I call it watermelon.

- A watermelon.

How come?

- But there's another, 'cause it looks like watermelon when you cut it.

- Oh, that I can do, too.

All right, so this is watermelon.

Let's go talk to Gail, 'cause she can tell us more about what this is called.

- Okay.

- Gail, it's Sheri.

It's so good to see you, my friend.

- Hello, Sheri.

How are you?

- How you doing?

You must've heard me talking about not knowing what different kinds of figs are, 'cause it looks like you've given me a lesson here on a pretty plate.

- I have several.

- Okay.

- I have a pound fig.

- Paul, can you hold my bucket?

I gotta pay attention.

- This is the watermelon.

- That's what we were just picking, the watermelon.

- Right.

This is a lemon.

- For the color?

- Yes and this is a turkey fig.

- Which I've seen before.

Maybe- - And these are Celestes.

- So, these little Celestes, I've heard these are so delicate and tiny.

Now, I need to see the inside of these.

If I hold the plate, will you?

- Sure.

- [Sheri] Oh, wow.

- [Gail] This is the prettiest one.

- [Sheri] This is the... And that's... Look at the inside of that.

- [Gail] Looks like a watermelon.

- It does look like a watermelon with its green and its white.

Yeah, they named that one right.

- This is the lemon.

- I've never heard of it.

Now, it's so much paler.

Okay.

- [Gail] And this is the brown turkey.

- Yeah.

That's the ones that grow near where I live.

Chapel Hill and then- - This is the Celeste.

- Now, I was told, but you guys are the fig experts, that if the stem is tough, you take it off, but other than that, you can use the whole fig.

There's nothing to seed or peel or anything.

You just use 'em straight up.

- No.

- So, which one is your favorite?

- This one is the sweetest to me.

- Okay.

Can I eat this?

Is that... - You sure can.

- I didn't even ask.

Look at me pick it up without manners here.

Oh my Lord.

The best way to keep 'em, 'cause they're just as delicate they can be, that's why everybody makes so many preserves, right?

'Cause you've gotta preserve 'em.

Do y'all ever get tired of figs or... [Paul chuckles] - A little bit.

- Yeah.

- We eat fig preserves almost every morning.

- I hear that they're, I mean, they're full of fiber and iron and stuff, but they're just so sweet.

I mean, that is an amazing thing to me.

- They make a delicious appetizer.

Stuff 'em with the little goat cheese.

Wrap 'em in prosciutto and drizzle 'em with some balsamic glaze.

- Oh, man.

That's good living right there.

That is good living.

How many are y'all gonna pick today?

You don't know.

That's just it.

You don't know when you get up what the day's gonna hold.

- Well, oldest Celeste now is pretty well back done for.

So, only thing we'll get today is the pan fig and the watermelon fig.

- I have never seen a thing like this before.

That is amazing to me.

Can I have one more?

- [Gail] You can have all you want.

- I'm holding the plate, but I'm asking.

- [Gail] You can eat all you want.

[upbeat music] - Boy, do I love a good one-pan chicken dinner when I want something delicious and quick.

You're gonna be amazed how golden this turns out.

[upbeat music continues] I just put a little slick of olive oil in this pan and I'm gonna add some chicken thighs.

Now, I salted them last night, because that overnight rest with salt really crisps up that skin, and then I'm gonna with a little pepper, I'm gonna put these skin side down in my skillet.

So, let me put 'em in the pan spaced out evenly, so they don't crowd [food crackling] and I'm gonna let these guys cook until that skin is perfectly golden and you know the best way to do that?

Just walk away.

[gentle upbeat music] [gentle upbeat music continues] Let me check these.

Oh my goodness.

They are gorgeous.

They're crispy, they're golden.

They're already smelling delicious.

Now, I'm gonna finish cooking these in the oven, because that'll give you a more moist chicken and before I pop 'em in the oven, I am just dropping in some nice big sprigs of rosemary and some big beautiful strips of lemon zest.

That's going to season the chicken while it finishes in the oven and while it is in the oven, I'm gonna use that time to get my gorgeous figs ready and some other good stuff, too.

[gentle upbeat music continues] [upbeat music] Let me see.

Oh my goodness.

Yes.

This is gorgeous.

The chicken has cooked through, the rosemary and the lemon have added their flavor, and now, I'm going to build my pan sauce and to do that, I'm gonna lift the chicken out of the pan and let it hang out while I add my other things.

I'm also going to lift out the rosemary and the lemon at this point, because it's given up all the flavor it's going to have.

Now, I'm gonna put this over here and while that chicken was cooking, I cut up some shallots and I cut up our gorgeous fresh figs.

So, the first thing I'm gonna do is I'm going to add these shallots to the pan and let them start cooking.

I'm gonna put in just a little bit of salt, because salt will help them release their moisture and start getting tender and I'm gonna start stirring up from the bottom and letting all that gorgeous brown deliciousness start joining the pan sauce.

So, now that these are nice and sizzly, I'm going to add some brown sugar.

This is gonna be part of the flavor of the sauce, but it's also going to help these shallots turn a gorgeous golden color.

That was a couple of tablespoons.

So, let me stir this until this sugar dissolves, and then in preparation for those figs, I'm gonna do a step called deglazing and all that means is to take a little bit of a liquid and in this case, I'm using a beautiful dry sherry [food sizzling] and what that sizzling is doing is loosening even more of that gorgeous flavor from the bottom of the pan, but its real job here is to help loosen these drippings, so that we don't miss a delicious drop [upbeat music comes to a stop] and now, it is time to add these gorgeous figs.

Now, the idea is I want these to warm through, but I don't want them to break down.

I want to be able to see pieces of fig and I'm also going to add just a little splash of sherry vinegar to match the sherry we used for deglazing.

That vinegar is gonna mix with that brown sugar and make this delicious sweet and sour flavor combination.

So, I'm gonna let these hang out just a minute until they start to soften a little bit and while that happens, I'm gonna add a pinch of red pepper flakes and I'm gonna give it a quick stir and we are almost done.

Now, the last ingredient is going to be some delicious, ripe high quality green olives.

These are not your martini olives.

These are a beautiful, fruity, briny, buttery olive that's gonna give you a little bit of salt and a little bit of character to this beautiful sauce.

This is a built pan sauce, but the last thing I'm going to do is I'm going to return my chicken to the pan.

It's still hot, 'cause it's just been over here for a little bit, but I want it to have a little bit of time in the pan to absorb some of these flavors.

Put that back in there, maybe a couple of minutes and there we go.

Now, remember how I put the rosemary in when I put the chicken in to roast?

I saved a little bit of fresh rosemary and I'm gonna sprinkle that over the top.

Those little things about knowing when to add flavor all add up to an amazing chicken dish.

Now, I love making this in a pan that I can take straight to the table, but this can hang out for a while on those days when not everybody gets home at the same time.

It is just as good room temperature as it is now, which is another reason I love a good one-pan chicken dinner and when you add figs, well, it's as good as it gets.

[gentle music] [upbeat bass guitar music] Fig cakes are as big a deal as the figs themselves on the outer banks and each island community has its favorite.

When it comes to Ocracoke cakes, Trudy Austin has won the festival's blue ribbon more than once.

Today, we get to visit her kitchen to learn a few of her secrets as she shares an old family recipe.

[upbeat music] I cannot believe I am in the kitchen of the legendary Trudy Austin, famous Ocracoke fig maker.

Are you really gonna show me how to make one of these?

- Yes, I am.

I am.

I am so excited.

- [Trudy] Good.

- So, while we're cooking, I have 1,000 questions.

- Okay.

Sure.

- But let's get started.

First of all, I noticed that you have everything organized.

That's 'cause you make how many of these in a year?

- Probably in a year, I make about 300.

- Oh my gosh.

- Yes.

- So, you have to be organized.

Okay.

I'm gonna start pouring.

So, tell me what I have here.

- [Trudy] That is two cups of all-purpose flour.

- [Sheri] Okay.

All right.

- We're doing our dry mix first.

- Okay, and then what am I putting in here?

- We do a teaspoon of nutmeg.

- [Sheri] Ooh, that's a lot of nutmeg.

That's gonna be good.

- Yep and that's a teaspoon of allspice.

- [Sheri] Okay.

- Teaspoon of cinnamon.

- [Sheri] All right.

- [Trudy] Teaspoon baking soda.

- [Sheri] All right.

- And a teaspoon of salt.

- All right.

Now, I just whisk these together?

- Yes, whisk those together.

- Okay.

All right.

I love that this cake does not need a mixer, 'cause people have been making these here since way before mixers came along, right?

- Yes and no one uses a mixer.

So, we set that aside.

- [Sheri] Okay.

- We move on to our wet ingredients.

- Okay.

- We have three eggs, - Just three good ole whole large eggs.

- Yep.

Yep.

Beat those.

We whisk 'em first.

- Whisk the heck out of 'em?

- Yes we do.

- That's a technical term.

Whisk the heck out of 'em.

- Whisk the heck out of 'em.

Now, I use a cup and a half of sugar.

- All right.

Ooh, that's nice and thick.

- Next, we have a cup of oil in here.

- I love a good ole oil cake for the moisture and stuff.

- Yes and it's a vegetable oil.

- I want you to lay hands on it, 'cause I have a feeling that your just touching it is the magic touch and we don't wanna skip out on that.

- So, next, we have a 1/2 cup of buttermilk.

- Ooh, good ole buttermilk.

- Yes.

- I love that, what that's gonna do for the crumb.

- So, we poured the dry ingredients.

- [Sheri] Okay.

Into here?

- Into here.

Yes.

In here first.

- And just all at once?

- All at once.

Yes.

- That's interesting that it doesn't alternate.

- I used to do alternate a little at a time back and forth, the buttermilk and that and I found over the years, it made no difference at all.

Then, we have the 1/2 cup of buttermilk.

- So, you go ahead and you put that in before all the dry's incorporated?

- Yep.

Yes.

- Who in the world?

I would've never, if I had read this, I wouldn't have believed it.

That's why showing me is so much better than reading about it.

- Yes.

No mixer.

It takes some time.

It takes a little longer.

So, next is 1 cup of chopped pecans.

- Okay.

- And we just mix that up.

- [Sheri] And there's some people that don't put nuts or put different ones.

- Yes.

- Is this another one of your personal touches?

- This is my...

I like pecans.

A lot of the women around here will use walnuts.

- Yes.

Now, we're gonna use fig jam in this eventually.

- Yes.

- It's not the fresh figs.

- I cook the jam for two days and so, the sugar, it makes it real sweet and everything and I do it in smaller pieces, but when I'm getting ready to put it in my cake, I may touch it a little bit with a chopper, my grandmother's chopper.

Okay, so I just poured this in.

- [Sheri] Do I need a scrape for ya?

- [Trudy] Yep.

- All right.

- [Trudy] Scrape for me there.

- I'll scrape around here, every last little bit.

- And then we'll... And the last ingredient is they call for like 1/2 teaspoon or a teaspoon.

I just bite ya.

- I like a good glug.

- I do, too.

- Don't you like a good glug?

- We save some of the juice from the preserve.

It may only be a half-pint.

Sometimes, it can be a pint.

As you can see, it's does not have the pieces.

- Oh, look at that.

So, it's just literally the sugar syrup.

- Sugar syrup.

- From the jam.

- And you know, I will just do a splash in each cake, so they're moist and this is all mixed together.

- Now, do you do yours... What kinda pan are we gonna use?

- We are gonna use a bunt pan.

- A bunt pan.

I bet you either have to grease and flour.

- [Trudy] Yes.

- Or spray the heck out this, so it gets in every little nook and cranny.

- Yes.

Exactly.

- Right?

- You have to with a bunt pan like that and I just take and pour it around.

- [Sheri] So, it's a thin batter.

- [Trudy] Yes.

- [Sheri] But yet, but it's thick enough to suspend.

- [Trudy] Yes.

- All those pieces of those nuts and that little bit of fig from the jam and so forth and I bet it makes it moist and sweet, 'cause that jam, you're getting your fruit, you're getting your sweet.

- Sweet.

- You're getting your moisture.

- Exactly.

- You're getting your Ocracoke magic.

So, since this is thin batter, I bet this cooks a pretty good while, right?

- It cooks 50 minutes.

- Okay.

- At 350.

[gentle upbeat music] [relaxing music] - So, look at this.

So, tell me how we got here.

Obviously, we got it out of the oven.

Now, you've got a secret to how long this cools, right?

- Yes.

I have tried 30 minutes or an hour and sometimes, you know how tricky a bundt pan can be and pieces will come off.

I like right at 45 minutes.

- So, do you trust me to cut this thing of beauty?

- Yes, ma'am.

- Oh, it just glides through like a dream.

You can tell this is gonna have great texture.

All right, so let's do our big reveal.

Oh my gosh, look at that.

[relaxing music continues] That is amazing.

May I give you some?

Serrated knife's perfect for this, isn't it?

- [Trudy] It is.

- Yeah.

All right.

Oh, that is so beautiful.

Gotta have a bite.

Gotta have a bite here.

Do you eat some every time you make one?

- I do.

I always have a fig cake.

Yes.

- Oh, yeah.

[relaxing music continues] - At its essence, it's a spice cake.

- It is.

- That tradition, but it's moist, it's tender.

This is delicious.

I can't believe...

I can see why this is a tradition.

- Very basic, very simple, but... - So good.

- The figs really bring it out.

[relaxing music comes to an end] - I love figs.

I love how they turn a little bit jammy, but yet, hold their shape.

They can be sweet, they can be a little bit tart.

There's a mystery in every fig.

I'm gonna make a fresh fig crostata.

A crostata is a big open face dessert and it is easier than pie.

[gentle music comes to an end] [upbeat music] Now, I have cut these into quarters, because I want them to hold their shape in this crostata and so, quarters are working really well for these figs.

Now, what I need to do is start adding flavor and my inspiration for the flavor in this crostata is a bourbon cocktail called an old-fashioned.

So, my first drizzle here is some good bourbon.

The next thing I'm gonna add, a few dashes of bitters, but I want to thicken these figs a little bit, so that my filling's not too runny and so, I'm gonna do that with a combination of corn starch and brown sugar.

It's interesting, the brown sugar is gonna make them release some juice, and then that corn starch is gonna make sure that those juices don't run out all over the pan.

Sprinkle them over my figs, and then give this a super big stir.

It's important that each one of these figs is coated in a little bit of all of this good stuff.

So, once these are really nicely coated, you can pull out your pastry and this is just good pie pastry.

Now, the first part of my little filling is cream cheese, just a good room temperature cream cheese and I'm going to work in an egg yolk.

That egg yolk is just gonna give this a little bit of body.

Just stir these together until it's relatively smooth and when this is pretty well combined, we're gonna spread this onto our pie pastry.

Now, when you're making crostata, you're really kind of just working in the middle of things, because we have to remember to leave enough pastry that we can fold it up over the edge.

So, I'm gonna spread this and nobody's gonna see this, so you don't have to be super tidy.

You don't have to be super tidy with the pie crust either, because we're gonna fold it over and everything is seamless in the end, and then I have orange marmalade.

So, I'm gonna add orange to this two different ways and the first thing is the marmalade and now that that's on, we're gonna revisit our figs.

The last thing I'm gonna do is put in a tiny, tiny pinch of salt, because salt makes all that sweet taste even better.

Look what I'm doing.

How easy is this?

Now, when you make a crostata, you gotta keep the fruit high.

It's gotta look like it's gonna be too much, because this is gonna collapse in the oven.

Now, I'm adding some walnuts.

Place them around, so that some of them are going to show when this comes out of the oven and now, we're gonna fold up the edges.

I'm not much for crimping a pie crust, but by golly, I can fold a crostata.

All I'm doing is I'm lifting this up and kind of pinching it together.

Pinch it pretty well, so it will hold together and look how this comes together.

I love this.

It never fails to fascinate me.

We're nearly done.

The last thing I am going to do is I'm gonna take the egg white that was left from the egg yolk I put with the cream cheese.

You're gonna take some of this and you're gonna brush it on the outside of your pastry.

This is helping seal that pastry.

It's also gonna give a pretty little shine, so your baked goods look like they came from a bakery, and then gonna take some coarse sugar and sprinkle that on the edge and when this bakes, this is gonna give you a little crunch, a little shine, just one more thing that makes this seem special and just like that, we've made a crostata.

Just as important as the baking is the refrigeration beforehand.

We want this dough to firm up, so it'll make great sturdy side walls for all that fruit and also, we know that chilled pastry in a hot oven is what makes it flaky.

So, I'm gonna put this in the refrigerator.

[gentle music] You know how when fig season kicks into gear and suddenly, you have all of these dead ripe figs and you're like, "What am I gonna do with all of these?"

I'll tell you what I do with 'em.

I make honey roasted figs and it is dead easy.

[curious music] Arrange the figs cut side down in a baking dish that can hold them in a single layer.

If your figs are squishy ripe, don't try to cut them at all.

Just put them in the dish.

Tuck the herbs and lemon zest between the figs, drizzle with lots of honey, sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Roast until the figs turn tender and their juices begin to bubble, about 10 minutes or so.

Remove them from the oven and let it stand for a few minutes.

I love to use these on a snack board with a nice ripe cheese and good crackers or bread.

If you have leftovers, pour them into a jar, cover, and put them in the fridge.

They'll keep for up to a month.

If you find yourself with lots of jars trying to keep up with all those figs, these make generous gifts.

So, this is ready to go in the oven.

That pastry is chilled and firm and I'm gonna let it bake for about 45 minutes to an hour, just long enough to turn that crust golden brown, and get those fig juices bubbling.

[upbeat music] This has been out of the oven for just a few minutes and my final touch is this gorgeous, fresh orange zest.

One of the things I love about crostata is I never really know how they're gonna turn out.

I have to taste this.

So, let me cut a little wedge out of here.

You can serve a crostata warm or you can let it cool off to room temperature.

Lift out a beautiful piece.

Oh, look at that.

The fruit is tender.

My pastry is crisp.

[upbeat music continues] The thing about figs, they're like apples.

There's all kinds and they all taste different.

This one is fruity, but not sugary.

There's almost a red wine essence to it.

That little bit of orange comes up, that hint of cream from that cream cheese, all enrobed in this crunchy pastry.

You ought to make a crostata.

They're easy and they're gonna make you happy.

[upbeat music comes to an end] [relaxing music] No matter the variety, there is nothing like a ripe, tender, honey sweet fig plucked straight from the tree.

With just one bite, you'll see that fresh figs can be the key ingredient in delightful ways.

So, the white milky stuff.

So, it's just like sap on the- - [Trudy] Yes.

Yeah.

- Like tree sap?

- [Sheri] Okay.

- [Trudy] It's the tree sap.

- But you don't want it on your skin.

Yeah.

- Yeah.

- [Sheri] This one's starting to split.

That must be full of sugar.

- [Trudy] Sugar.

- Yep.

That sounds good.

- Absolutely.

This one is not quite ready yet.

You can, yeah.

- You can squeeze and feel.

We have one down here.

It's ready.

- It's like unscrewing a light bulb.

- [Trudy] Yes.

- Like, just a little, like a doorknob might be a better... [relaxing music] Those are so beautiful.

- [Trudy] That's everything there.

- I can see where somebody, where I like compulsively looking for things.

I can see me wanting to get into some serious fig spotting if I were down here longer.

- Yes and this tree is a pound tree.

They protect that fig.

[upbeat music] ♪ [upbeat music continues] ♪ [upbeat music comes to an end] - [Sheri] For all the recipes from the show, visit our website.

It's where you'll find the key ingredient for a perfect time in the kitchen.