Homemade Fig Newtons
Are you ready for your new favorite snack bar? You better be. Because these Homemade Fig Newtons are about to become just that.
That box of Fig Newtons you were planning on placing into your grocery cart this week? Don't. Don't do it. Make these instead. They're the homemade version. They're the copycat version of those Fig Newton Bars. And they're just as good. No, they're better.
Fig Newtons start with a soft and tender cookie dough base. The dough is so soft and tender, it almost has a cake texture. Which is what Fig Newtons used to be called when they first started selling them. Cake. They were called cake. Really.
The soft and tender cookie base also traditionally has a slight orange tang to it, which you'll see included in the recipe below. And then, this soft, tender, and buttery dough is filled with a sticky, gooey, sweet fig filling. Also with a kick of orange flavor.
The fig filling is made with dried black figs, honey, sugar, cinnamon and a few other additions. All this is cooked over a flame to get the figs soft and to cook out the liquids and to intensify the flavor of the filling. And then the filling is pulsed in a food processor till it turns to mush. And then you roll out the dough into a rectangle. And then you slice the dough into three sections. And then the fig filling is piped down the center of one of the sections of the dough. And then the dough is rolled up around the filling into a log. And then you bake the log. And then you slice the log. And then you get Homemade Fig Newtons.
And if all of this seems very confusing to you, don't worry. I provided some pictures below of the process. And explain the instructions just a little bit more clearly under the written recipe below.
Fig Newton pyramid, come at me. I wonder if I could fit the whole pile into my mouth at once. Huh.
The truth is, I'm not big on baked goods with dried fruit in them. Oatmeal raisin cookies are sacrilegious. It's oatmeal chocolate chip cookies or nothing at all. And don't get me started on blondies with dried cranberries in them.
But these fig bars have dried fruit in them. Figs. Dried figs. Because duh, they're fig bars. And I did have to eat these fig bars with figs in them. I know, poor me, I had to. For the blog. To test out the recipe and tweak it and make sure it's up to par. But after my mandatory tastings, I developed a new strategy for eating these homemade Fig Newtons. I only eat the surrounding cookie slash cake and leave the filling for someone else i.e. the trash can. Because no one is gonna eat the plain fig filling I slobbered all over. Oh, and my apologies for being so graphic. I should have warned you.
It's just like how lots of people eat Oreo cookies, but in reverse. Because instead of licking the creamy center, I only ingest the surrounding cookie. So it's not that weird, right?
The dough for these bars is made with half white flour and half whole wheat flour, which is why you may have noticed that the fig bars look a little darker than your average cookie dough. There's also only half a cup of sugar in the whole dough, and only two tablespoons in the filling.
So I'd say you should have no problem including one of these fig bars in your kid's lunch box. Or in yours. I also give you permission to grab a couple as an on-the-go breakfast. Trust me, it's better for you than almost any store-bought breakfast bar. These Fig Newtons also work great as an afternoon pick-me-up. Or as a road trip accompaniment. Or stashed in your carry-on bag as plane food. Or as a midnight snack.
All the above-mentioned situations are appropriate times and occasions to consume these homemade Fig Newtons. I give you my word.
Or just enjoy one of these fig bars any time of the day with a cup of steaming hot coffee, which is my choice of feasting, as can be seen from the photos here.
homemade fig newtons
Adapted from Broma Bakery
Yield: About 18 bars
1 stick butter, room temperature
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon orange extract
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup white whole wheat flour or whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
Filling:
8-9 oz. bag dried black mission figs
1/2 teaspoon orange extract
Juice of half an orange (or 3 tablespoons orange juice)
1/2 cup water
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add in the egg and extracts and beat till creamy and light again. Stir together the flours, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt and add to wet mixture, mixing until just combined.
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and flatten to a disc. Freeze for 40-60 minutes. Meanwhile, prepare the filling.
Remove any tough stems from the figs. Add all the filling ingredients except the honey and sugar to a pot and cook over a low flame until all the liquid evaporates (about 15 minutes).
Transfer filling to a food processor. Add in the honey and sugar and pulse till mixture turns to mush.
Place filling in a pastry bag fitted with a large round tip. Preheat oven to 325 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Flour your work surface, the top of the chilled dough, and your rolling pin generously. This is a soft, slightly sticky dough, so as you roll it out, keep checking that it isn't sticking to your work surface and keep flouring as necessary.
Roll dough out to a 10x14 inch rectangle. Trim the edges to make them even. Then, cut the rectangle into 3 even sections lengthwise.
Pipe a line of the fig filling down the center of each of the 3 sections you cut out. Fold one edge of the dough on top of the filling, and then roll the log over, leaving you with a smooth top and the seams on bottom. Repeat for the other two logs and then carefully place them onto your prepared baking sheet.
Bake logs for 18 minutes, then turn up oven temperature to highest heat (broil) and bake for another 1-2 minutes.
Slice each log into 6 bars while still hot.
On a completely unrelated note, I think I just found my spirit animal:
photo from dump a day dot com
