Fig classes to be held on Ocracoke

July 21, 2022 | Island Features | From The: Ocracoke Observer

Hyde County’s Family and Consumer Sciences Extension agent, CatieJo Black, will teach two fresh fig cooking classes on Ocracoke Aug. 1 and 2 in anticipation of the upcoming Fig Festival Aug. 4 to 6.

Free classes on making fig bread and fig jam will be limited to 12 participants and registration is required.

Fig bread class will be held from 9:30 to noon on Aug. 1. While fig cakes are a common treat among those who have access to the fruit, those looking for something a little less sweet could try fig bread, which is made similarly to other fruit breads, with ripe figs.

Fig jam class will be held from 1 to 3:30 p.m. on Aug. 2.

While fig preserves are popular on Ocracoke, the figs must be boiled for a long time, they must set in the fridge and then warmed again before canning. Fig jam can be made in two to three hours and jam can be enjoyed year-round.

The classes are free thanks to a grant from the ECU Health Beaufort Hospital.

For more information and to register, visit: https://hyde.ces.ncsu.edu/2022/07/fig-classes-on-ocracoke-2022/

The Ocracoke community will celebrate the summer’s fig bounty at the Fig Festival Aug. 4 to 6 at the Berkley Barn and on the grounds of the Ocracoke Preservation Society Museum, who produces the festival.

Special guest Chef Ricky Moore, owner of the popular Saltbox Seafood Joints in Durham, will judge the Fig Cake Bake-off.

Moore recently won the Best Chef honors for the Southeast region from the James Beard Foundation.