Ciao Italia 2218 Italian Fig Cookies
How to make Italian Fig Cookies
How to make Italian Fig Cookies , Cucidati, Sicilian Fig Cookies, or Christmas Fig Cookies... __________↓↓↓↓↓↓ CLICK FOR RECIPE ↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓
Whatever you want to call them one thing is for sure, these deliciously moist, tender and sweet, fruit filled cookies have been part of Italian weddings, Christmases, and other special occasions for many Italian households for centuries.
Prep time 30 mins, Cook time 14 mins, Total time 44 mins, Recipe type: Dessert , Serves: 36
Ingredients
For the Dough:
2¾ cup flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1½ cups powdered sugar
¼ tsp salt
6 Tbsp butter, cold & cubed
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 Tbsp cold water
For the Filling:
12 oz dried figs
¼ cup almonds
3 Tbsp apricot preserves
2 Tbsp orange juice
For the Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbsp milk or water
½ tsp vanilla
Instructions
Place all of your dry ingredients in a food processor and pulse the cut-up butter until you get a coarse meal. Add the eggs, vanilla and water and continue to pulse until the dough forms into a ball.
Remove the dough from the food processor and knead it a bit on a floured surface. This is where you may need to sprinkle a little extra flour as you go. Form the dough into a ball, put in a bowl, cover and refrigerate.
Once your food processor is clean again add the almonds and figs. Pulse until roughly chopped.
Add in the apricot preserves and orange juice and mix until finely chopped. It will resemble a thick fig jam. Place in a bowl, wrap it up and refrigerate in order for the flavors to blend.
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough in a rectangle shape, you can decide how big or small to make your fig cookies, it all depends on how big or small you make your rectangles(mine are about 10 inches long and 2-3 inches wide, but I experimented with many sizes and shapes, and encourage you to do the same!).
Scrape the filling onto a lightly floured surface and knead to shape into a log. Place the filling in the center of your rectangle, fold the side over and seal them on the other side of filling. Gently roll into a smooth log.
Wrap it in plastic and refrigerate until firm enough to slice. Continue rolling until all of your dough and filling is finished.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Cut cookie log into 1 inch bite size cookies. Repeat with all the dough. Place the cookies onto a parchment lined baking sheet. They don't grow so you can put them pretty close together.
Bake for 14 mins or until just lightly golden. Cool completely.
For the icing, mix together the powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk to achieve the desired consistency. You’ll want the icing to be thick enough not to be runny, but still easily spreadable.
Ice the tops of the cookies and decorate with sprinkles, if desired.
Let the icing set completely before storing in an airtight container.
Italian Fig Cookies | 12 Days of Cookiemas
I will be taking a short break for the holidays, but don't forget to subscribe because early next month I will be back with more delicious recipes just like this. Happy holidays!
Italian Fig Cookies
Yields about 3 dozen
Dough Ingredients:
4 c AP Flour
1 tsp. Baking Powder
¼ tsp. Kosher Salt
½ c Granulated Sugar
1 c Vegetable Shortening
1 Egg, large
1 Tbsp. Vanilla Extract
½ c Whole Milk
First, add the flour, baking powder, and salt to a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. In a separate bowl cream the sugar and vegetable shortening together. Then, add the egg, vanilla, and milk combine with a hand mixer. Next, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients a little at a time until all the of the dry ingredients have been added and a dough forms. You will need to use your hands at the end to finish forming the mixture into a dough. Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour.
Fruit Filling Ingredients:
1 c Dried Figs, quartered and stems discarded
1 c Pecans, roasted (350* for 10-12 min) and chopped
1 c Raisins
½ c Dates, quartered and pits discarded
½ c Walnuts, roasted (350* for 10-12 min) and chopped
¼ c Cointreau
¼ c Honey
1 tsp. Lemon Zest
½ tsp. Cinnamon, ground
¼ tsp. Nutmeg, freshly grated
¼ tsp. Cloves, ground
Add all the filling ingredients to a food processor. Blend the mixture in the food processor until it forms a ball. Refrigerate the fruit filling for at least 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 375*F.
On a well-floured surface cut the dough into four pieces. Roll out the dough one piece at a time into an 1/8” thick rectangle. Cut the dough using a knife or bench scraper into a 3”x 8” rectangle. Roll the fig filling into a log and roll it up inside the dough rectangle. With a knife or bench scraper cut the pastry into 1” pieces. Bake on a parchment lined baking sheet for about 16 – 18 minutes. Let the cookies cool completely before icing.
Icing Ingredients:
1 1/3 c Powdered Sugar
3 Tbsp. Whole Milk
¼ tsp. Vanilla Extract
Multicolored Nonpareil Sprinkles
In a mixing bowl combine the powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla. Mix until smooth. Dip the top of each cookie into the icing and then immediately into the sprinkles one at a time. Allow the cookies to dry uncovered on a wire rack.
How to Make Classic Italian Fig Cookies (Cuccidati) | Nicole's Favorite Christmas Cookies
Italian fig cookies, or cuccidati, are light and crisp pastries with irresistibly soft centers that will steal the show this Christmas. Perfect for cookie swaps, parties, and gift-giving, Nicole McLaughlin's recipe is an homage to her own childhood memories filled with an array of Italian cookies to sweeten the holiday spread. Learn how to make these nostalgic treats and celebrate one bite at a time.
#ItalianCookies #ChristmasCookies #Cuccidati #Fig #Recipe #Allrecipes
00:00 Introduction
00:09 Ingredients
00:57 Chopping up the ingredients
01:41 Food processor
03:51 Make it ahead of time
04:09 Dough
06:02 Add filling and add to the dough
06:45 Glaze
07:39 Final result
Read the article and get the recipes here:
Chef and mom of three, Nicole McLaughlin, will share all the cooking basics — plus some things you may have missed — as she walks you through comprehensive videos that include kitchen tips, food facts, and cooking techniques.
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How to Make Classic Italian Fig Cookies (Cuciddati) | Nicole's Favorite Christmas Cookies
Sicilian Grandma makes Sicilian Fig Cookies (Cucidati)- Episode #48
Making Cuccidati, Sicilian Fig Cookies
This video shows the process for making Cuccidati, Sicilian Fig Cookies, creatively and artistically sculpted by a Cuccidati master, our Marie.