Fig Cookies

17/11/2023

Fig cookies are a true delight, with their natural sweetness and soft texture. Here is a recipe for making Italian-style fig cookies:

Ingredients

250 g of type 00 flour
100 g of room temperature butter
100 g of granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder for sweets
1 pinch of salt
Grated zest of 1 lemon
200 g of dried figs
2 tablespoons of fig jam (optional)
1 tablespoon of rum or water to soften the figs

Preparation

First of all, soak the dried figs in rum or water for about 30 minutes, then chop them finely (you could also add a bit of fig jam to intensify the flavor).
In a large bowl, mix the flour with the baking powder and salt. In another bowl, cream the butter with the sugar until you get a smooth and creamy mixture.
Add the egg and the grated lemon zest to the butter and sugar mixture, and continue to work until everything is incorporated.
Now gradually pour the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt) into the wet mixture, stirring until a smooth dough is formed.
Divide the dough into two equal parts and roll each out into rectangles on a lightly floured surface.
Spread the chopped figs over one of the dough rectangles, leaving a free edge around.
Cover with the other rectangle of dough and seal the edges by pressing gently with your fingers or with the tines of a fork.
Preheat the oven to 180 °C and, in the meantime, cut the dough piece filled with the figs into cookies about 1 cm thick.
Arrange the cookies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving a little space between each one.
Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden.
Remove the fig cookies from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack before serving.

Curiosity

The fig is a fruit highly valued in Mediterranean cuisine and has a long history dating back to the ancient Romans and Greeks. These fig cookies are inspired by classic Italian flavors and are perfect paired with a vin santo or an Italian coffee.