Fig Swirls Recipes

FIG PINWHEELS

Steps:

• Make dough: Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda into a large bowl, set aside. Put butter and sugars in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Mix in eggs. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture. Divide dough in half, and wrap each half in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour or overnight.
• Transfer one of the dough halves to a lightly floured piece of parchment paper. Roll out to a 10-by-12-inch rectangle, trim edges with a knife. Repeat with remaining dough half. Transfer each rectangle on parchment to a baking sheet. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
• Make filling: Bring figs, raisins, and juices to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium. Cook, stirring often, until fruit has softened and only a few tablespoons of liquid remain, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely. Transfer fig mixture to a food processor, and puree until smooth.
• Spread half the filling over each rectangle. Starting with a long side, roll dough into a log. Wrap each log in plastic; refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cut logs into 1/4-inch-thick slices using a sharp knife, transferring to baking sheets lined with parchment paper (and reshaping into rounds, if needed) as you work. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges turn golden brown, about 15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks.

ANISE-SCENTED FIG AND DATE SWIRLS

Steps:

• Purée figs and dates with water and 2 tablespoons granulated sugar in a blender or food processor until almost smooth.
• Whisk together flour, anise, baking powder and soda, and salt in a bowl. Beat together butter, cream cheese, and remaining 1/2 cup granulated sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at moderate speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in vanilla and yolk until combined well. Add flour mixture and mix at low speed until just combined.
• Halve dough and form each half into a rectangle. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, about 1 hour.
• Roll out 1 piece of dough between 2 sheets of wax paper into a 9- by 7-inch rectangle, about 1/3 inch thick. Remove top sheet of wax paper and drop half of fig mixture by spoonfuls onto dough, then gently spread in an even layer, leaving a 1/4-inch border around edges. Starting with a long side and using wax paper as an aid, roll up dough jelly-roll style into a log. Roll log in raw sugar to coat completely. Make another log in same manner. Chill logs, wrapped in wax paper, until firm, at least 4 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Cut logs crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices and arrange slices about 2 inches apart on lightly buttered baking sheets. Bake in batches in middle of oven until pale golden, 15 to 17 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool.

GREEK YOGURT WITH A FIG, DATE, AND HONEY SWIRL

Steps:

• Toast the nuts in a saute pan over medium heat until they become fragrant. Put the nuts onto a plate and set aside; when cool enough to handle, chop them roughly. In a small saucepan over medium heat, add the figs, dates, honey, water, lemon juice, and cinnamon stick. Cook for about 10 minutes until fruit is soft. Set aside and let it cool slightly; remove the cinnamon stick. Place the yogurt in a big bowl. Spoon the warm fruit onto the yogurt and gently swirl the fruit through the yogurt. Sprinkle on the nuts and garnish with mint leaves. Serve immediately.;

FIG SWIRLS

Steps:

• Make pastry dough:
• Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
• Pulse butter, cream cheese, yolk, and vanilla in a food processor until smooth, then add flour mixture and pulse until dough just forms a ball.
• Halve dough and form each half into a roughly 6- by 2-inch rectangle. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Make filling:
• Purée figs, honey, juice, zest, and cinnamon in cleaned food processor until almost smooth.
• Make logs:
• Roll out 1 piece of dough between 2 sheets of wax paper into a 10- by 8-inch rectangle (about 1/3 inch thick), long side facing you. Remove top sheet of wax paper and gently spread one fourth of fig mixture over bottom half of dough, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Using wax paper as an aid, roll dough, jelly-roll style, halfway, enclosing fig mixture. Flip dough, with wax paper. Remove paper. Spread with one third of remaining fig mixture and roll in same manner, to form an S-shaped log. Make another log. Chill logs, wrapped in wax paper, until firm, at least 4 hours.
• Bake cookies:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 375°F.
• Cut logs crosswise into 1/3-inch-thick slices and arrange slices about 2 inches apart on lightly buttered baking sheets. Bake until pastry is pale golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer to racks to cool.

BROWN-SUGAR ICE CREAM WITH CARAMEL FIG SWIRL

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, heat the milk, vanilla bean and scrapings, and pepper. Scald the milk, cover, and remove from heat. Let steep for 30 minutes.
• Combine the egg yolks and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat at medium-high speed until very thick and pale yellow, 3 to 5 minutes. Meanwhile, return the milk to a simmer.
• Remove the vanilla bean. Add half the milk to egg-yolk mixture, and whisk until blended. Stir into remaining milk, and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens enough to coat a spoon.
• Remove from heat, and immediately stir in 2 cups cream. Pass mixture through a strainer into a medium bowl set over a large bowl of ice water. Allow to chill.
• Meanwhile, dissolve the granulated sugar in 1 cup of water in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Set over high heat, wash down sides of pan with a pastry brush, and cook, without stirring, until an amber caramel forms, 8 to 10 minutes, swirling the pan occasionally. Remove from heat. Carefully stir in the remaining 1/2 cup cream. Add the vanilla extract, cinnamon, and 8 figs. Let stand about 15 minutes while the mixture cools and figs soften.
• Remove from heat, and chill. Puree caramel mixture in a blender or food processor, and set aside.
• Freeze ice cream in an ice-cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Fold 1 cup of chilled caramel sauce into frozen ice cream, until large swirls of caramel form. Transfer to a plastic container, and freeze for at least 2 hours to harden.
• Cut remaining 16 figs in half lengthwise. Combine remaining caramel sauce and figs in a saucepan. Heat over medium heat just until figs are warm, 3 to 5 minutes, and serve warm over the ice cream.

ANISE-SCENTED FIG AND DATE SWIRLS

Steps:

• In a blender puree figs and dates with water and 2 tablespoons refined sugar. In a bowl whisk together flour, anise, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl with an electric mix-er beat together butter, cream cheese, and remaining 1/2 cup refined sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla, yolk, and flour mixture and beat until a dough forms. Form dough into a disk. Chill dough, wrapped in wax paper, 1 hour, or until firm enough to handle.
• On a lightly floured sheet of wax paper with a floured rolling pin roll out dough into a 13- by 10-inch rectangle, about 1/3 inch thick. Drop fig mixture by spoonfuls onto dough and gently spread an even layer over dough. Starting with a long side, roll dough jelly-roll fashion into a 13-inch log, using wax paper as a guide. Roll log in raw sugar to coat. Chill log, wrapped in wax paper, 4 hours, or until firm.
• (After the dough has been formed into a log it can be kept in the refrigerator for one week or the freezer for one month. Thaw the frozen dough in the refrigerator until sliceable, about four hours. The baked cookies keep in airtight containers at room temperature for four days.)
• Preheat oven to 350° F. and lightly butter 2 baking sheets.
• Cut log into 1/3-inch-thick rounds and arrange about 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Bake cookies in batches in middle of oven until pale golden, about 13 minutes, and transfer to racks to cool. The baked cookies keep in airtight containers at room temperature for four days.