Mission Figs! But I have a Black Madiera fig tree (Chicago Hardy).
I wont be able to get the texture right with Black Madiera
Maybe my next Fig tree will have to be Mission Figs! I hope they grow in zone 6!
They are always worth a try....texture might work out. I'm unfamiliar with Black Madiera figs. Texture can be adjusted usually with extra OJ.
I developed a cookie, named after my wife, that I casually spent years making and developing. They require dried Cherries to make. There's a difference between dried Cherries. I found ones that are exceptionally tart even after being dried. They are perfect....but I've made them with "generic" dried Cherries as well....and both are good. BUT when I use my tart dried Cherries the cookie is exceptionally good. (Addictive for many)
In my bakery I used generic dried Cherries....food costs matter there but at Christmas and my house and friends....nope. I use my Ron Swanson license and do what I want.
Mission figs are the most common dried Figs. Kinda like Bartlett pears, Blue Lake green beans, granny smith apples, or Valencia Oranges. Each has a use that produces consistent results.
However, that by no means, means that it's always going to be the best.
When I visit an apple orchard in the fall....granny Smith apples are NOT on my agenda even though they grow them. They have several varieties that make better pies and concoctions than granny Smith ever dreamed of. But it takes repeated attempts to make the discovery.
This is how us Chefs get good at cooking. We are cat people with professional level knowledge of how each ingredient functions...constantly adjusting everything over and over until we push boundaries and make something exceptionally good. No magic ingredients, no real magic anywhere....just a TON of practice of doing the same things over and over again until we are satisfied....which never really happens. I have yet to really be completely satisfied with the loaves of bread I have made. I always want more.
But remember, I owned a bakery with hundreds of thousands of loaves of bread coming out and selling. And me unsatisfied with every loaf.
Some say it's a design flaw in my psyche.
Some say it's a feature.
What say you?
Currently I'm working on a roulade of pork loin with apples and ginger with a caramel sauce. Kinda spicy and sweet all at the same time. Goes great with rice or pasta. It requires a whole pork loin and tieing up the log after stuffing it. Then roasting it until it hits the temp. Gotta be careful or else the apples won't cook but the pork will. But it's slice and serve. Kinda like my chicken stuffed chicken. (Has 4 legs) I remove all the bones from the chicken but leave it perfectly intact....and then stuff it with another double chicken breast and stuffing. Then carve it completely wrong but cross grain all at the same time. Which is the show. But without the bones...it's neat.
Let me know how things work out.
