Recipe: Homemade Fig Newtons from Fresh Figs

 Funny story: when I was pregnant with my second child I craved fruit in all shapes and sizes really badly. I really wanted fig newtons at one point, and guess what you can't find anywhere in Germany? You guessed it. Fig newtons. So, when the opportunity arose, I knew I had to try to make them myself from scratch. 

Fig Newtons:
For the Fig Jam:
500g (about 8) fresh figs
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract or 1 tbsp vanilla sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice

For the shortbread crust:
1 1/2 cups (190g) flour
1/2 cup (60g) powdered sugar
2/3 cup (170g) butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract or 1/2 tbsp vanilla sugar
1/4 tsp salt

Start out making the fig jam. Cut the tips off the figs and quarter them. 

Put them into a small saucepan. Add the brown sugar, salt, vanilla and lemon juice. 

Stir well. 

Heat over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil. Then reduce heat to low and simmer the figs, stirring occasionally for 45 minutes to an hour. 

The outside of the fig will become softer over time. Simmer until the mixture reduces to about half. 

Then chop up the last pieces of fig using a blender or hand blender. There can still be a few small pieces left, as long as most of the chunks are small. Set aside. This can be made days ahead and kept in the fridge.

For the shortbread crust, add all the dry ingredients to a bowl, flour, powdered sugar, vanilla and salt and stir briefly. 

Then cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or two knives, finishing up by kneading the last of the chunks into the dough. The dough should be fairly uniform. 

You can chill it in the fridge, if desired, but I actually don't like to. Split the dough in two pieces and press one of them into the bottom of a 6x6 inch square cake pan. 

Pour the fig jam on top and spread out evenly. 

Press the second half of the shortbread dough into the shape you want on the counter and pick it up and place it on top of the fig jam. If you don't care about the top looking perfect, you can just press pieces of the dough onto the top. 

Bake in a 350°F or 180°C oven for 35-40 minutes or until top is golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before trying to cut into bars.

Tip: These fig newtons are delicious, but they don't keep well. The should be fine for 4-5 days, but if you don't think you'll finish them all in that time, they freeze beautifully.

Watch us make these delicious fig newtons on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/9HaZugg9TVM
Schaut zu wie wir diese leckere Feigenschnitten auf unserem YouTube Kanal machen hier: https://youtu.be/NEptmJpMaYI