Finally, I lit on a reference to Baby Fig Spoon Sweet, basically candied figs in syrup, and decided this was just the ticket. While the recipe provided me with the framework and basic process ...

would stew thew figs covered in sugar and water for 20 minutes each day and then roll them in more sugar and dry on waxed paper to be put in tins for Christmas “candied” figs. Recipes abound ...

Those candied figs are put to succulent use in Wynne's Florentine tart recipe, along with candied cherries and orange peel. Even to a fruitcake skeptic, the cake recipes in Nature's Candy look ...

In this recipe from pastry chef Shawn Gawle of March restaurant in Houston, the cheesecake is topped with chestnut honey, which pairs perfectly with sweet caramelized figs and candied lemon zest.

In more recent decades, I've contributed to fig consumption with blue cheese and goat cheese, with cracked pepper and crusty bread, in gratins and poached with vanilla; paired with candied orange ...