I love figs, they are high in calcium, and almost every other mineral and can be eaten as is, but have in recent years made a welcome addition to many salads.

8-10 Ripe green or black figs cut in quarters

1 cup Marinated cauliflower – made my chopping into tiny pieces the size of crumbled feta cheese, soak in half a cup EV olive oil, juice of 1 lemon, 1-2 tsp.

Mustard seeds and 1 tsp. ready made mustard, Mary-Ann’s Seasoning salt (this is the essential ingredient as the hint of nutmeg and other spices lifts the flavor so that it tastes a lot like feta.

Baby eggplant – sliced in half and grilled gently

Place all the ingredients gently on a bed of butter lettuce and baby spinach topping with the cauliflower – serve

Figs are among the richest plant sources of calcium ,fiber, copper, manganese, magnesium, potassium, & vitamin K, relative to human needs. They have smaller amounts of many other nutrients. Figs have a laxative effect and contain many antioxidants. They are a good source of flavonoids and polyphenols including gallic acid, chlorogenic acid, syringic acid catechin, epicatechin & rutin.

In one study, a 40-gram portion of dried figs (two medium size figs) produced a significant increase in plasma antioxidant capacity.
According to the USDA, 100g (about 5 figs) of dried, uncooked fruit of the Common Fig (Ficus carica) contains;

Energy 249 kcal

Protein 3.30 g

Fat 0.93 g

Carbohydrate 63.87 g

Sugars 47.92 g

Dietary fiber 9.8 g

In addition, fresh fruits contain adequate levels of some of the anti-oxidant vitamins such as vitamin A, E, and K. Altogether these phyto-chemical compounds in fig fruit help scavenge harmful oxygen derived free radicals from the body and thereby protect us from cancer, diabetes, degenerative diseases and infections.

Furthermore, research studies suggest that chlorogenic acid found in figs help lower blood sugar levels and control blood-glucose levels in type-II diabetes mellitus (Adult onset) condition. It is important to remember that although fruit contains natural sugar, which is stable on blood sugar, it also contains dozens of other known and still unknown nutrients that help stabilize blood sugar naturally.

Fresh as well as dried figs contain good levels of B-complex group of vitamins such as niacin, pyridoxine, folates, and pantothenic acid. These vitamins function as co-factors for metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.