Italian Fig Cookies Food

CUCIDATI (ITALIAN FIG COOKIES)

Steps:

• For cookie dough, sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl.
• Add sugar and stir well.
• Cut in the shortening with a fork or pastry blender and work the mixture until it looks like corn meal.
• In a bowl, beat egg, vanilla and milk together.
• Add egg mixture to the flour mixture and mix with an electric mixer for about 3 minutes until well blended; dough will be soft.
• (The original recipe says to knead the mixture for 5 minutes on a floured surface, but I find my Kitchen-Aid works great for this step!) Divide the dough into four pieces and wrap each piece with plastic wrap.
• Refrigerate dough for 45 minutes.
• To make the filling, grind figs, dates and raisins in a food processor until coarse.
• (If you don't have a food processor, you can chop by hand until coarse) Place chopped figs, dates and raisins in a bowl.
• Add remaining filling ingredients and mix well.
• (Mixture will be thick) Set aside mixture.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Work with one piece of dough at a time, leaving the other pieces of dough in the refrigerator until needed.
• On a floured surface (I often use confectioner's sugar for rolling my dough), roll the dough to a 12-inch square.
• Cut dough into 2X3-inch rectangles.
• Spoon about 1 teaspoon of filling onto each rectangle.
• Carefully fold the long edges over to meet in the center and pinch to seal seam.
• Place each cookie, seam side down, on a baking sheet, making sure you leave at least 1-2 inches between each cookie.
• Make 2 or 3 diagonal slits on the top of each cookie with a sharp knife.
• Bake for about 12-15 minutes, or until cookies are golden in color.
• Remove from oven and transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool.
• For icing, place confectioner's sugar in a bowl.
• Add just a little water or milk, until you get a smooth consistency- but not runny!
• Ice the tops of each cookie and sprinkle with colored sprinkle.
• Let icing dry completely before stacking!
• Store in air-tight containers up to 2 weeks.

ITALIAN FIG COOKIES I

Steps:

• To Make Dough: Cream sugar and shortening. Add eggs, vanilla, and salt. Blend in flour and baking powder by hand. Knead dough until smooth and workable. Add milk to reach workable consistency. (This takes a while and you will get a workout, but you'll know when it's right.)
• To Make Filling: Cut up figs, orange, and apple into small pieces. (It is easier to grind this way). Grind figs, raisins, orange, and apple. If the mixture is too dry or thick, mix in up to 1 cup of water, if desired. (I do not use the water, the juice from the apple and orange are enough). The spices and chopped nuts are added to the ground fig mixture. After the fig mixture is ground, I sprinkle them in over the mixture and mix (knead) it in by hand. STICKY! But good.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Roll out some dough. (should be kind of thin). Put fig mixture in a line. Wrap dough over mixture, sealing figs inside dough. Trim to desired length, using a diagonal cut. Make small diagonal slits in the sides of the cookies. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 10-15 minutes. (Dough makes good cookies without the filling also). Wonderful with coffee.

FIG AND WALNUT COOKIES

Steps:

• For the pastry dough: Whisk the eggs and vanilla in a small bowl to blend. Mix the flour, sugar, lemon zest, and salt in a large bowl. Add the butter and rub in with your fingers until the butter is the size of small peas. Add the egg mixture and mix with a fork until the dough comes together. Gather the dough into a ball. Divide the dough in 2 and flatten into disks. Wrap the dough disks in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, for the filling and cookies: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Line 2 heavy large baking sheets with parchment paper. Finely chop the figs and raisins in a food processor. Add the honey, orange juice, cinnamon, and lemon zest, and pulse just to blend. Scrape the fig mixture into a medium bowl. Stir in the walnuts. Transfer the fruit mixture to a pastry bag.
• Roll out 1 disk of dough on a floured work surface to 1/8 to 1/4-inch thickness. Using a 2 1/2-inch diameter biscuit cutter, cut out dough rounds. Gather the dough scraps into a disk, then cover and refrigerate while assembling the cookies. Spoon the fruit mixture in the center of each dough round. Lightly moisten the edges of the dough with the egg wash. Fold the dough over the filling and press the edges to seal. Arrange the cookies evenly apart on the prepared baking sheets. Brush the tops of the cookies with egg wash. Bake until the cookies are pale golden, about 18 minutes.
• Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and cool completely. Repeat with the refrigerated dough scraps and remaining filling.

ITALIAN FIG COOKIES (CUCCIDATI)

Steps:

• Prepare filling: Working in two batches with ½ of the figs and ½ of the dates at a time, pulse dried fruit in a food processor until finely chopped; transfer to a bowl.
• Use a vegetable peeler to peel orange zest into the empty food processer. Juice the orange until you have 3 tablespoons juice; add it to the food processor. Add raisins, pecans, honey, brandy, cinnamon, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg and process until finely mixed.
• Add fig-date mixture and process until well combined, adding water 1 tablespoon at a time as needed to reach a thick consistency. Refrigerate filling for 8 hours to overnight.
• Prepare dough: Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a food processor and process for 5 seconds to combine. Add butter and shortening and pulse until crumbly. Add milk, egg, vanilla, and almond extract and process until a dough forms.
• Turn dough onto a well-floured surface and knead until smooth. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.
• When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Turn dough onto a floured surface and cut into 4 pieces. Roll one piece into a 4x12-inch rectangle, about 1/8-inch thick. Trim off any excess to form straight edges and save to make more cookies.
• Place about ¼ of the filling in a 1-inch log shape down the rectangle, just to the right of the center line. Dampen the edges of the dough with water and fold the right edge over the filling. Continue rolling the dough toward the left edge, then rock back and forth gently to stretch and seal the edges. Cut the log into 2- to 3-inch pieces. Make 2 or 3 slits in the top of each cookie to allow steam to escape. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven until golden on the bottom and cooked through, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Repeat to form, cut, and bake remaining cookies.
• Prepare icing by whisking powdered sugar and milk together in a bowl until smooth. Divide icing into thirds in 3 small bowls. Color one bowl with red food coloring to make pink icing, color another bowl with green food coloring to make green icing, and leave the remaining icing white.
• Dip each cookie into a different color icing and allow excess to drip off. Place iced cookies on parchment paper and decorate lightly with sprinkles. Allow to dry for at least 20 minutes before serving.

ITALIAN FIG COOKIES

Steps:

• To make the filling, in a food processor, combine the figs, dates and raisins and process to finely chop. Place the mixture in a medium bowl, add remaining filling ingredients and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours.
• To make the dough, in a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and whisk to combine. Add the butter and blend with your fingertips until most of mixture resembles coarse meal.
• In a medium bowl, beat the egg, milk and vanilla together. Add to the dry mixture and stir to make a rough dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. Cut the dough into 4 pieces, cover, and refrigerate for 45 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly grease 2 large baking sheets.
• On a lightly floured surface, one at a time, roll out each piece of dough into a 12-inch square. Cut the dough into 4 by 3-inch rectangles. Spoon 2 tablespoons of filling down the center of each rectangle. Fold the long sides of each rectangle inward to the center to enclose the filling; pinch the edges to seal. Turn the cookies seam-sides down and press gently to flatten the seams. With a floured knife, cut the logs crosswise into 1 1/2-inch-wide slices and arrange 1/2-inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Brush with egg wash and decorate with colored sprinkles. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.
• Transfer to wire racks to cool. Serve warm or at room temperature.

ITALIAN FIG COOKIES

Steps:

• Make filling:
• Pulse figs and raisins in a food processor until finely chopped, then stir together with remaining filling ingredients in a bowl. Chill, covered, at least 8 hours.
• Make dough:
• Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add butter and blend with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until most of mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Add eggs, milk, vanilla, and zest and stir with a fork until a soft dough forms. Halve dough and gather each half into a ball, then flatten each half into a rough 6- by 4-inch rectangle between sheets of plastic wrap. Chill until firm, at least 8 hours.
• Form cookies:
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Roll out 1 rectangle of dough (keep remaining dough chilled) into a 15- by 14-inch rectangle on a well-floured surface with a floured rolling pin. Trim to a 13- by 10-inch rectangle (chill trimmings), then cut into 4 (10- by 3 1/4-inch) strips. Arrange 1/3 cup filling in a 1-inch-wide log lengthwise down center of each strip, then fold sides of each strip up over filling to enclose it, pinching edges together to seal. Turn rolls seam-sides down and press gently to flatten seams. Cut logs crosswise with a floured knife into 1 1/2-inch-wide slices and arrange 1/2 inch apart on buttered large baking sheets. Make more cookies in same manner with remaining chilled dough, trimmings (reroll once), and filling.
• Bake cookies in batches in middle of oven until golden around edges, 16 to 20 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks and cool until warm, about 10 minutes.
• Make icing while first batch of cookies bake:
• Whisk together confectioners sugar, vanilla, and enough orange juice to make a pourable icing.
• Brush icing on warm cookies and decorate with nonpareils (if using), then cool completely.
• Available at some specialty bakeware shops and Sweet Celebrations (800-328-6722).

ITALIAN FIG COOKIES

Steps:

• For cookie dough:.
• Combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder.
• Cut butter into flour mixture.
• Add eggs, milk, and mix.
• Knead dough until smooth. I use my Kitchen Aid heavy duty mixer with the kneading hook.
• Let dough rest 1 hour.
• Roll out dough and cut in 2x12inch wide strips. Place roll of fig filling in center of strip. Fold dough over filling and seal. Cut into 2 inch pieces. Place on greased cookie sheet and bake for 12 minutes at 350 degrees.
• For fillling:.
• Mix all filling ingredients and cool in refrigerator for one hour. After one hour, put flour on a smooth surface and take about a cup of filling and roll into a small cigar shape. Make it long enough to place in the 2x12 inch strips of dough.(The floured surface makes it easy to roll the filling. Also flour your hands. This filling freezes well and can be used for next year's St. Joeseph's Table or Christmas.) Repeat for each strip of cookie dough.