Italian Fig Biscuits
The sweet, chewy filling of these fig-filled biscuits is made of dried figs, sultanas, almonds and cinnamon. A pinch of black pepper adds a secret something that truly makes these biscuits special.
Ingredients
Serves: 24
- 300g plain flour
- 5 tablespoons caster sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 130g butter or margarine
- 120ml milk
- 1 egg, beaten
- 300g dried figs
- 125g sultanas
- 4 tablespoons flaked almonds
- 4 tablespoons caster sugar
- 4 tablespoons hot water
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 pinch ground black pepper
Method
Prep:25min ›
Cook:25min ›
Extra time:2hr chilling ›
Ready in:2hr50min
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, 5 tablespoons sugar and baking powder. Rub in margarine or butter until mixture resembles small peas. Stir in the milk and egg until the dough comes together. Divide dough into two pieces, wrap and refrigerate for about 2 hours or until easy to handle.
- In a food processor or blender, grind the figs, sultanas and almonds until they are coarsely chopped. In a medium bowl, stir together the 4 tablespoons of sugar, hot water, cinnamon and pepper. Stir in the fruit mixture, cover and set aside until the dough is ready.
- Preheat oven to 180 C / Gas 4.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece of the dough out to a 15cm square. Cut each piece into twelve 7.5x10cm rectangles. Using a heaping tablespoon of filling for each rectangle, spread filling along one of the short sides of the rectangle. Roll up from that side. Place rolls, seam side down, on an ungreased baking tray. Curve each roll slightly. Snip outer edge of the curve three times.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, until golden brown.
Icing
Drizzle these biscuits with a simple icing sugar icing if desired. Simply combine icing sugar with a little bit of milk at a time until you get a thick drizzling consistency. Drizzle over cooled biscuits.
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Reviews & ratings
Average global rating:
(24)
Reviews in English (20)
This recipe produces a delicious variation of the classical Sicilian fig cookie known as ( il )cuccidato . The plural form is ( i ) cuccidati . Typically the cuccidato is not curved but is formed by cutting 2-3 inch segments from the baked 18"-long fig-mixture stuffed pastry . The festive nature of the cuccidati ( normally served only during the Christmas Holiday ) can be enhanced by adding colorful sprinkles to the frosting mentioned in this recipe . - 04 Nov 2003 (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)
delicious and not difficult to make. i rolled four long strips, about 18x4 inches each, put filling along the center from end to end, then brought the long edges together and pinched to seal. i used a pizza cutter to cut cookies from each log. i got 52 cookies this way. my baking time was about 15 minutes. the tops did not come out brown, but they were not doughy at all. i used a simple sugar glaze of 1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar, 2 TBS orange juice, and 1/4 tsp vanilla extract; and then put some pretty sprinkles on. - 18 Nov 2007 (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)
A very unique cookie! I really enjoyed the rich flavor of the filling. Instead of doing bars, I cut 3" circles, spooned the filling in the center and folded the pastry dough over, sealing the edges. - 21 Dec 2006 (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)