Colorful fig, Proscuitto, Advocado and Heirloom Tomato Salad

Gorgeous salad by accident

My friend Martena was nice enough to get me some proscuitto from Eataly.  Going to Eataly can be such an ordeal due to the massive crowds - this was really a mitzvah (notice my Yiddish in honor of Yom Kippur).  The quality of the food at Eataly is top notch (for those of you who live outside of Manhattan - Eataly is an amazing market that has the best Italian products.  But the crowds are crazy.  For those who don't know Yiddish, a mitzvah is an act of kindness).

But I digress.  Martena got me proscuitto.  I would never buy this for myself and didn't know what to do with it.  Martena suggested I wrap some around sliced figs.  At this time of year,  figs are in season.  So I bought fresh figs at the fruit stand along with other items on sale. 

Proscuitto with figs - they cost $3 bucks for a package of 8 figs

Figs wrapped with prosciutto

I tried the proscuitto wrapped around figs and while it was perfectly good, it was kind of boring.  Also note that prosciutto isn't exactly skinny cuisine.  It's very high in calories and fat, so try to limit each serving to 1 - 2 slices enough to get a nice taste of it and to add color to the salad, but not enough to break the calorie bank.  Shred the slice(s) and scatter throughout the salad - a little goes a long way.  Having the prosciutto in a salad saves hundreds of calories over wrapping them around the figs.  If you have a measly 5 figs with prosciutto we're talking 1,000 calories.  If you shred one to two slices in a salad it's 200 - 400 calories - less than half.  I'm very disciplined about keeping things low fat and low calorie - but you have to live a little.  This way you have your high fat treat but in a low fat fashion (if that makes sense!).  Advocados are high in fat, too, but it's considered "good" fat.  They are high in vitamins and lean proteins.  Athletes seek them out to improve performance.  They are also cholesterol free. One advocado contains about 300 calories. 

I had heirloom cherry tomatoes on hand . . .

And was making a salad when inspiration hit

I also bought an avocado that had to been eaten that day

Et viola!

Ingredients

1 - 2 slices prosciutto per person thickly shredded

1/2 ripe advocado - peeled and chopped into chunky pieces

1/4 - 1/2 cup heirloom cherry tomatoes per person

1/2 lemon

4 figs per person cut length-wise

1 tbspn extra virgin olive oil

1 tbspn balsamic vinegar

Salt & pepper to taste

Method

Combine all of the dry ingredients on a plate or in a bowl

Top with extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar

Squeeze the lemon over the salad

Season with salt and pepper to taste