Homemade Fig Newtons

These Homemade Fig Newtons are better than store bought and actually super easy to make! A delicious and soft oatmeal based cookie, wrapped around a sweet fig filling, and soft baked to perfection. If you thought the ones in the store were delicious, just wait until you make your own! Every bite is perfectly sweet, figgy, with just a light hint of orange to give these cookies a much needed lightness, and just melt-in-your-mouth GOOD. The absolute best part, though? They’re made from ingredients you can easily find in the grocery store. Nothing speciality! Each fig newton is just as delicious as the last. Perfect as a cute retro gift for the holiday’s, as a back to school treat in a lunch box, or as a quick and delicious snack!

→ This post is also available as a Web Story: Homemade Fig Newtons

About The Recipe

I have never been so excited to share a recipe with all of you! We were inspired to make this recipe after stumbling upon some fresh figs in the grocery store the other day and…it just worked out beautifully!

Not only is this a treat from my childhood, but I think everyone’s. There is nothing better than a fig newton, you know? My mom used to buy them for me and my brother all the time! Especially during road-trips. They were a sweet treat that the whole family loved.

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Now, you can make your own!

But, getting here wasn’t so easy. We’ve made this recipe SO. MANY. TIMES. just to get perfect! The hardest part? The filling! I know, it’s really so simple, but it just was giving us so much trouble in the beginning…which isn’t even the fillings fault. It was ours!

We wanted to use orange in the filling as a way to lighten it and bring this sweet treat a bright zing. It’s just the orange zest was so. strong. We had about two batches that were so orange-y that it tasted like…well, eating an orange!

It was tasty, but a fig newton it was not.

So, we we had to go back to the store, buy a few more dried figs, and remake the filling.

To give you an idea, we started at 1-1/2 Tablespoons of orange zest. We finally found 1/4 of a teaspoon to be perfect. See the difference?

But, once we got the filling sorted, the rest was a breeze! The cookie for this recipe is actually an adaptation of our Oatmeal Raisin Cookie. It was a soft, but sturdy cookie that tasted great, too! And, since we delved into gluten free recipes, we had some Oat Flour left over. It was perfect.

But, if you don’t have oat flour, don’t worry! You can use Steel-Cut Oats and grind them down into a fine powder. It will be the exact same thing.

So, once we got everything finally together, these cookies turned out to be SO. GOOD. If I’m being totally honest, they truly are so much better than store-bought!

Equipment Needed

• Food Processor
• Stand-Mixer
• Sheet Pans
• Parchment Paper
• Rolling Pin
• Sharp Knife or Pizza Cutter
• Piping Bags

Ingredients

For The Filling:

• Dried Figs
• Almond Flour
• Powdered Sugar
• Egg Whites
• Vanilla Extract
• Salt
• Orange Zest

For The Cookie:

• Oat Flour
• All-Purpose Flour
• Baking Powder
• Baking Soda
• Salt
• Unsalted Butter
• Brown Sugar
• Eggs
• Vanilla Extract

Instructions

Cut stems off of the figs. Purée into a a thick paste.

Combine the fig paste, almond flour, and powdered sugar in the bowl of a stand-mixer. Mix until well combined and crumbly.

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Add the egg whites and vanilla.

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Stir in orange zest and salt. Set aside.

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Whisk together the oat flour, all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

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In a clean mixer bowl, mix butter and sugar until just combined.

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Add eggs one at a time, beating well in-between each addition.

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Stir in the vanilla.

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Mix in the dry ingredients.

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Divide the dough into thirds. Working with 1 portion of dough at a time, place on an un-floured piece of parchment. Lightly sprinkle top with flour. Roll into a rectangle that is 4″ wide and 1/8″ thick. Trim.

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Pipe the fig filling straight down the middle third of dough. Using the parchment to help, roll the dough over to the left so that the seam is on the bottom. Press gently to seal.

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Using a sharp knife, slice into 1 1/2″ sections. Repeat with remaining dough and filling, mixing scraps back in and re-rolling.

Place the cut cookies on prepared baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 7-8 minutes until just starting to brown.

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Troubleshooting Dough & Cookies

• Dough Sticking to Counter: This dough needs to be rolled out onto parchment paper to keep it from sticking! It’s also essential for rolling and shaping.
• Dough is Tearing/Cracking When Rolling: This is because the dough is dried out. You might’ve waited too long to roll it out. It’s still usable, but the cookies just won’t be as pretty!
• Excess Dough Baked Out From Under the Cookie: This happens sometimes! It’s because there was too much dough folded up under the cookie. It’s totally okay. Leave it or just cut off!
• Not Enough Dough to Cover Filling: When testing this recipe, we also had this issue! It was due to over-filling the cookies. Use the excess dough from trimming to fill the gap!

How to Store

These cookies keep well in a sealed container on the counter for about a week. You can also store them in a freezer-safe for 2-3 months!

Expert Tips

• Cut off the stems on the dried figs before puréeing.
• Be careful not to over-mix the cookie dough!
• Don’t add more than 1/4 teaspoon of orange zest! It’s just enough to bring some flavor to the cookies.
• Don’t press too hard when assembling the cookies! You just want to gently seal the cookie.
• You can cut the cookies bigger or smaller. The baking time will need to be adjusted.

When you make these Homemade Fig Newtons, leave a comment down below! We love hearing from you and answering any questions you might have! Also, be sure to tag us on social media and hashtag it #BakersTable.

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