Fig, Blueberry, Roasted Sweet Potato & Spinach Salad with Goat Cheese and Balsamic Reduction

I have spent my life proclaiming I don't like figs.....until this summer. That's when I tasted a REAL fig. I think before this year, at the age of 32, my only point of reference for how a fig tasted was a Fig Newton (don't judge me). Sad but true and I shunned this amazing little fruit until this year when I started seeing them everywhere at my favorite farmers market. My husband salivated over them until I agreed to buy them and attempt to create something tasty with them. The first thing I did was put them over simple oatmeal with a little honey. I was, in all seriousness, like a child with how I approach my breakfast bowl that morning: nose scrunched, lips in a pucker and lowered eyebrows. I was convinced that this was about the most disgusting breakfast I had ever made. Boy, was I wrong! And I haven't stopped cooking with them since.

This salad was an instant hit in my house and I have since made it for several gatherings, always returning with an empty platter. It's a fun mixture of textures and flavors. It can be doubled and served as a meal or made to recipe and enjoyed as a side. I recommend enjoying it al fresco, with a lovely glass of wine glass of wine, a sunset, and great conversation.

Ingredients  

3 ripe green figs, sliced

1/2 cup fresh blueberries

1 medium sweet potato

3 cups baby spinach 

1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F

2. Wash, puncture, wrap sweet potato in foil and bake for 40 minutes or until tender. 

3. Once cool, peel the potato skin off and throw away (optional. I like to leave it on, personally). Slice into chunks

4. In a small sauce pan, bring the balsamic vinegar to a boil over medium high heat. Let cool slightly

5. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until it reaches desired thickness 

6. In a bowl, combine figs, blueberries, potato chunks, spinach. Toss until all ingredients are evenly distributed. 

7. Top with goat cheese and drizzle with balsamic reduction to taste

8. Serve