Fig Newtons

I LOVE fig newtons! In a previous post I mentioned that I made some and since I didn't follow a recipe exactly I better try to put it here before I forget. My kids loved them. Even Adria who hates anything new. I thought they were good- but not quite like the cheap fig newton knock offs I remember. - maybe next time I will try leaving the orange out of the dough- but Adria said they were bettter than the ones from the store. I used 2 different recipes as a base - one for a cookbook called Bravetart by Stella Parks and one from Smitten Kitchen who also used the Stella Parks one and made changes herself. Mine is somewhere in between. Smitten Kitchen put 1/2 tsp orange zest in the filling- I don't think I did that- but she said it was a good way to get orange flavor but without putting it in the cookie.

COOKIE
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 plus 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt - I think I skipped it?
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 tablespoon fresh squeezed orange juice
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Combine butter, brown sugar, baking soda, salt, orange zest and honey. Beat until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add orange juice, then add the egg and yolks, beating between them, and continue beating until smooth. Reduce the speed to low and sprinkle in the flour, mixing until well combined.

Push the dough into a ball and wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour. I hate this part and usually try to skip it. But this dough is so sticky you really can't skip the fridge! Also you will need LOTS for flour for dusting when it comes to rolling them out.

FILLING
12 ounces plump, sticky dried mission figs, stems trimmed - I can only find them at Trader Joe's!
1/3 cup applesauce, any variety
2 tablespoons orange or apple juice

Cut the figs in half and put them in a food processor. Add applesauce and orange juice. Pulse until roughly chopped then continue to process until it makes a thick smooth paste. Scrap the sides occasionally. Put the paste into a freezer bag and cut a 1/2 opening off one of the corners. (Or use a piping bag with a 1/2 tip if you have one - I don't.) It says you can leave them for 24 hours or put them in the fridge for 3 weeks. Who has patience for that?

ASSEMBLE THE COOKIES
This is the tricky part. Check out Smitten Kitchen for some pics if you need help- I did.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Pat the dough into an 8 inch square then roll out to a 15 x 15 inch square. REMEMBER TO FLOUR WELL! Using a pizza cutter or bowl scrapper cut the dough into four 3 and 1/4 inch wide strips. (Did you do the math? I did - that doesn't equal 15! Where did the other 2 inches go?? I don't know. I tried cutting it as directed and then I ended up with extra dough- and had to roll stuff again - just cut it into 4 strips - maybe 5)

Holding the bag at a 90-degree angle just above the surface of the dough, pipe a 1 inch stripe down the center of each portion. Holding it this way is supposed to make the filling flatten out. Using a bench scrapper (love those!) fold one side of the dough strip over the filling. Brush off extra flour. Then roll over again with the seam side down. Gently flatten each bar with fingers and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet. (YES use parchment not your Silpat mats - you don't want to cut those later!) All 4 should fit on the cookie sheet. I had 5 sections (Remember the measuring problem) and they all fit on 1 sheet, but they did get touch each other during baking.

Bake the bars for 15 to 18 minutes until they are puffed and firm but do not have any significant browning. Immediately cut into 1 inch pieces with the bench scrapper - I did 2 rows at a time. Put the cookies into a paper towel lined airtight container, putting paper towels between each layer and on the top too. This lets the cookies steam so they can get that soft chewy texture - otherwise they are a little dry. They need to steam for at least 6 hours. One recipe said to cool the cookies on the tray and then put them in a container overnight or they were too soft - I wonder if she lived in a more humid climate. We did the 6 hour method and it worked great. I kept them in the same air tight paper towel lined container overnight and they were better the next day. They were gone before I knew it! So sorry there aren't any pictures!

P.S. - There's a bunch of other recipes in the Bravetart cookbook I want to try - I need to get my own copy instead of the library copy- Will anyone buy me a present? :-)