Tieghan Gerard Says You Should Be Putting Fig Preserves In Your Salad Dressing - Exclusive

It's coming up on the cozy time of year, which means that apple cider donuts, pumpkin pie, and warm fall salads are ready to fill up your kitchen. And Tieghan Gerard, known for her social media account, Half-Baked Harvest, is no stranger to seasonal recipes — especially when it comes to tasty salads. "I am a big fruit-in-salad girl, so that is something I think that people really miss out on," Gerard said in an exclusive interview with Tasting Table. The content creator normally opts for an apple salad, while enjoying underrated ingredients like figs or persimmons.

While you grab fruit to add to the greens, make sure to pick up some fig preserves to upgrade your salad dressing. Gerard explained, "It adds this touch of sweetness that — a lot of people will add a pinch of sugar, which I never do, to a dressing, but I'll add a great flavor like a fig preserve or some kind of jam, honey, or maple." According to the recipe blogger, fig preserves add a warmer and more "complex flavor."

Where does Tieghan Gerard snag fig preserves? Whole Foods or Kroger can usually check the ingredient off the list. "People underrate figs and they don't use them and I'm like, 'No, you guys, the figs are the best,'" she said. Homemade fig preserves consist of figs, sugar, and lemon (though processed jars may have additional ingredients) — the fruit is naturally sweet with the lemon adding a slight acidity that makes for a great ingredient in salad dressing.

If you don't have fig preserves in your cabinet, Gerard offers apple butter as an alternative. She detailed, "When I make it at home, I make it less sweet, but the ones you're going to get at the store are going to be on the sweeter side, so I'll use it a lot in baking." A tablespoon of apple butter in salad dressing can enhance the flavoring due to the additional spices, such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, etc. If you're searching for a warm and homey feeling this fall season, a classic fall salad — such as Tasting Table's sweet potato panzanella salad recipe — with an upscaled fruit dressing will definitely do the trick.

You can now order Half-Baked Harvest recipes on the Home Chef website. The "Nine Favorite Fall Things" giveaway will be available to enter on September 13 at 12 p.m. CT. Keep up with Tieghan Gerard's latest recipes on her Instagram page.