Mike Van de Elzen: Fig and oozy caramel loaf

This week I want to bring you one of my favourite recipes, how does this sound?   Fig and oozy caramel loaf!   Our figs are ready, so it's time to get them off the tree before the birds do. Here in New Zealand we have two common varieties being  Black mission, the darkest and sweetest of the figs. Commonly dried with it molasses type sweetness. Works really well with dark chocolate or wrapped in a piece of salty prosciutto.  Brown turkey, this is the variety we have on the farm. Not as sweet as the black mission making them a great fig for salads and the like as the flavour won't overpower the rest of the ingredients. If you want them to be a touch sweeter, simply drizzle them with a touch of honey and roast them.   Happy figging! Fig and oozy caramel loaf (serves 8ish)  Prep time: 20 mins  Cooking time: 40 mins  Fig topping  125g butter  150g brown sugar  6 figs, stem removed, skin on, halved  Line a small cake loaf tin approx. 20cm x 12cm with greaseproof paper and then grease with a touch of butter. Melt butter in saucepan over a low heat. Add sugar and stir over heat until the mix becomes foamy and pale (2-3 minutes). Pour evenly into the greased loaf tin. Place the half figs, flesh side down and set aside.  Cake batter  225g butter, softened  225g caster sugar  4 eggs  3 tbsp milk  100g LSA  1 tsp baking powder  ½ tsp salt  1 tsp ginger powder  150g plain flour  Yogurt for serving  Preheat oven to 180*C. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. In another bowl, lightly beat eggs together with milk. Gradually add eggs to butter and sugar, beating well after each addition. Stir in LSA, baking powder, salt, and ginger. Gently fold in flour. Pour cake mixture over figs, place on a baking tray and bake for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into cake comes out clean.  Remove from oven and rest on a wire rack for 5 minutes before sliding a warm knife around the edge of the dish to loosen. Carefully invert to turn loaf out onto a board  For here you can either serve simply sliced of toast the slices and serve with a good dollop of yogurt on the side.  LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.