Fig season is here and I found some amazing organic black figs at Trader Joes the other day, so I was inspired to make homemade fig jam. This fresh fig jam with honey and vanilla only has a few ingredients, is sweetened entirely with honey, and is super easy to make. The honey and vanilla add delicious floral notes while the addition of balsamic vinegar adds depth to the jam.
Note: This jam is not overly sweet. If you prefer it on the sweeter side, you can always add more honey. I wanted this to really be about the figs without a ton of added sugar.
Fresh Fig Jam with Honey and Vanilla Ingredients:
- 1 lb. organic black figs
- ¼ cup raw honey
- 1 ¼ teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pinch of kosher salt
Start by washing and prepping your figs. Cut the stem end off, then cut figs into half inch pieces (I cut each fig into eight pieces because mine were big).
Add the figs, honey, and pinch of salt to a medium saucepan over low heat. Mix to combine and stir so that figs begin to break down. Make sure to stir the mixture and keep a close eye on it so the figs don’t burn.
After about five minutes when the figs have begun to break down, add in 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar and continue to stir for another 5-10 minutes, breaking apart the figs as you go until the figs are almost completely broken down and the mixture becomes a dark burgundy color. There will still be some pieces of fig throughout the mixture, but you will notice that it looks like jam. I like pieces of fig in the jam but you can continue to cook the jam longer if you want it to be a smoother consistency.
Note: If you want a very smooth fig jam, cut the figs even smaller to begin with. The smaller you cut them to start, it will be less work to break them down, so you’ll have a smoother jam without many (or any) pieces of fig throughout it.
Turn off the heat and let the jam sit for about five minutes. Once it has cooled slightly, add in the vanilla then stir to combine. Finally add in the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of balsamic and stir to combine. If you prefer a more acidic jam, add ½ teaspoon of balsamic at the end.
Let the fresh fig jam with honey and vanilla come to room temp then store in the fridge in an airtight jar. This recipe makes one medium jar of fig jam that will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks. I’m sure you could use a preserving method of canning to keep this jam shelf stable for longer, but that’s not something I’ve tried. If it is something you’re familiar with, this fresh fig jam with honey and vanilla would be great to make and keep to give as a gift! It is delicious on a cheese board, on toast, or even stirred into yogurt.