Fig Squares Food

HOMEMADE FIG BARS

Steps:

• Cream butter and sugar with the paddle attachment of an electric mixer. Add egg, 1 egg yolk, vanilla, and lemon zest; mix well. Add flour and salt; mix on low speed until dough just comes together. Wrap dough in plastic, and chill until firm, about 1 hour.
• Divide dough in half. Roll out one half to fit a 10-by-15-inch baking sheet. Pick up dough by wrapping it around a rolling pin, and unroll it onto baking sheet.
• Spread fig filling evenly over pastry. Roll out remaining half of dough, and cover filling. Trim excess pastry to make a perfect rectangle. Chill for 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Use a paring knife to score dough lightly into 1-by-3-inch bars. Use a fork to prick holes in each bar. Make an egg wash by combining remaining egg yolk with 1 teaspoon water. Lightly brush bars with egg wash. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Cut into bars, and let cool.

HOMEMADE FIG BARS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the figs in a small heatproof bowl, cover with hot water and soak for 10 minutes. Remove the figs from the water with a slotted spoon and transfer to a food processor. Add the honey and 1 tablespoon of the soaking liquid. Puree until smooth and spreadable. Set aside.
• In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Add the flour and mix until a dough forms.
• Place the dough between two pieces of parchment, then roll into two 12-by-4-inch rectangles.
• Spread the fig filling on one half of each rectangle, spreading up the 12-inch side and leaving a 1/4- to 1/2-inch border.
• Fold the dough over on top of itself and gently press the dough together at the edges. Cut each log into 10 cookies and transfer to baking sheet lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment. Bake until golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool.

FIG BARS II

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
• In a large bowl, beat eggs and sugar until thick and pale. Sift together the flour, baking powder, salt, cloves, cinnamon and allspice; blend into the egg mixture along with the vanilla. Finally fold in the chopped figs and walnuts. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly.
• Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until lightly toasted. When cool, cut into squares and roll the squares in confectioners' sugar.

SCRUMPTIOUS FIG SQUARES

Steps:

• For filling: Finely chop figs in processor (do not puree).
• Combine with juice, sugar and peel in small saucepan.
• Simmer until thickened to consistency of jam, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes.
• Remove from heat and mix in vanilla and cinnamon.
• Cool completely.
• For pastry: Preheat oven to 350F (160C).
• Line 9 x 13 inch pyrex baking dish with foil.
• Cream butter with mixer until light; add sugar and vanilla and beat until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
• Combine flour, cornstarch and salt in small bowl to blend.
• Add to butter until mixture just starts to come together.
• Separate in half.
• Press one half into pan, just coming up sides slightly.
• Brush pastry edges with egg white.
• Spread filling over pastry, leaving a ¼ inch border.
• Crumble remaining pastry evenly over pan, and lightly pat down with hands, bringing to edge of pan.
• Combine 2 tblsps sugar with 1 tsp cinnamon.
• Brush pastry crust with remaining egg white and sprinkle evenly with cinnamon sugar.
• Bake until crust around edge is firm to the touch and pastry just begins to colour, about 1 hour, 20 minutes.
• Cool on rack.
• Remove pastry from pan, using foil as aid.
• Cut into 1 ½ inch squares.

FIG SQUARES

Steps:

• For baking: 1 egg, beaten For dough, in a large mixing bowl, mix dry ingredients. Add 1/4 pound soft butter and work finely into flour. Cut cold butter into 1/2 pieces and add to bowl. Work in until butter is left pea-sized. Drizzle water over mixture and toss in. If dough is dry, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, as needed. Dough should be loose in bowl, not in a ball. Turn out onto work surface and pull together. Divide into 2 equal portions, flatten each slightly, and wrap in plastic. Chill at least 1 hour before rolling. (Refrigerate up to 3 days, freeze up to 6 months.) For the fig filling, in a large saucepan, combine all but 1/3 of the grated zest and butter, and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently to dissolve the sugar. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 to 40 minutes until fruit is soft and liquid thickened. Transfer to a food processor and puree until smooth. Add butter and puree to blend. Add remaining zest and pulse in. Transfer to a bowl and allow to cool. To assemble and bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 11 by 17-inch baking sheet (up to 12 x18) with parchment paper. Remove one of the wrapped pieces of dough from the refrigerator and unwrap. Roll dough on a floured surface into a rectangle to fit the bottom and sides of the baking sheet. Line the sheet with the dough. Place the baking sheet in the freezer while the second piece of dough is rolled out in the same way. Remove baking sheet from freezer and spread fig filling evenly over the surface of the dough. Top with the second sheet of dough and pinch the edges to seal. Trim the excess dough. Brush surface of dough with beaten egg. Prick through the top layer of dough with a fork evenly over the surface (about 1 1/2 apart.) Place baking sheet on bottom rack of oven. Bake 25 to35 minutes, until dough is a light-medium golden brown. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack. Cut into portions (squares are traditional.)

OAT AND FIG SQUARES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350F . Put figs in a small saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Turn off heat and let figs soften for 5-7 minutes. Do not drain.
• Lightly coat an 8X8-inch baking pan with cooking spray (or line with parchment paper or nonstick foil). In a small bowl, mix canola oil or butter, honey, and milk. In a medium bowl, combine flour, rolled oats, baking soda, and salt; add wet ingredients, then mix well.
• Remove softened figs from water and place in a blender or food processor. Add 3 tablespoons of the rehydrating water and puree until smooth. (I added a tiny bit more water as they still seemed a little thick to spread easily.).
• Place a little more than half of the oat mixture in the prepared pan and spread evenly across the bottom. (It was sticking to my hands a bit, so I laid waxed paper over it to press on as I evened it out.) Spread figs evenly on top. Add remaining oat mixture on top of fig layer, allowing some of the figs to show through. (I just pinched off bits of the dough and dropped them evenly over the top.) Pat lightly to flatten.
• Bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely in pan on a wire rack. When cool, cut into 16 squares.

MARTHA'S CHEWY FIG BARS

Steps:

• Make the dough: Combine butter, granulated sugar, yolks, salt, vanilla, and flours in the bowl of a food processor. Process until dough comes together, 30 to 60 seconds. Turn dough out and divide in half. Shape each half into a 3-by-5-inch rectangle and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Chill for 1 hour.
• Make the filling: Heat figs and port in a small saucepan over medium until just simmering. Let stand until liquid is absorbed, about 10 minutes.
• Transfer fig mixture to a food processor. Add vanilla bean seeds, brown sugar, and salt; process until a paste forms, 1 minute.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees with rack in the middle position. Roll out one piece of dough between lightly floured sheets of parchment paper into an 8-by-11-inch rectangle. Spread half of the filling lengthwise down the center of the dough to form a 2 1/2-by-9-inch rectangle. Use parchment to lift dough and fold over the filling to cover. Pinch edges to seal. Refrigerate on parchment until firm, 15 minutes. Repeat process with remaining dough and filling.
• Remove both pieces of filled dough from refrigerator. Use parchment to carefully flip dough, seam-side down, onto a single parchment-lined baking sheet. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes. Combine egg and cream, and lightly brush dough. Sprinkle generously with turbinado sugar. Bake until golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool on pan before slicing crosswise into 3/4-inch-thick pieces.