Fig newton bars

by Andrea Gámez

Fig newton bars are an american classic. Maybe your wondering why does the tittle include the word “newton”; well it turns out that these delicious and famous cookies are named after the Massachusetts town of Newton, which is very close to a company that has been producing these cookies for more than 100 years, called Kennedy Biscuits before, and now known as Nabisco. This is the homemade copycat version of these delicious and famous bars.

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Fig newton bars recipe

We had always wanted to make these bars, but we had to wait for it to be figs season here in Mexico, which happens in summer. In summer, figs, in many places in Mexico are abundant. Sometimes some of our parent’s friends gift them figs (because they have fig trees), and they give them big boxes filled with figs. There are so many, sometimes they do not know what to do with them. As a piece of advise, figs taste great with some cheese and nuts, or even on their own, because they are naturally really sweet.

When our dad found out we would make these bars he was thrilled because he says he used to eat them a lot when he was a kid and that they were his favorite. But now, for some reason, they don´t sell them anymore, at least here. So here it is the recipe so we can “homemade” them, to get a copycat version of them.

Make homemade fig newton bars

In this recipe we use fresh figs to make the filling, but if you don’t get them fresh, you can easily use dehydrated figs following this same recipe.

These bars are crunchy and soft at the same time, they almost melt in your mouth when eating them, and the natural sweetness of the figs is just amazing, it makes it all come together beautifully. I love that you can see the small fig seeds in them, it makes them even prettier.

If you like this recipe, you have to see our goat cheese and fig toast.

Fig newton bars

5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Cooling time 1 hour
Total Time 2 hours 10 minutes
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Servings 18

Ingredients
  

For the dough:

  • (145 gr) unsalted butter at room temperature
  • 1/2 C + 2 tbsp confectioners sugar sifted
  • The yolk of a hard boiled egg grated
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • The zest of an orange
  • 1 3/4 C all purpouse flour
  • 1/4 tsp cinnamon ground
  • 1 pinch salt

For the fig filling:

  • 15 figs fresh
  • 1/4 C brown sugar
  • 1/4 C + 2 tbsp white sugar
  • The zest and juice of 1 lime
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions
 

For the dough:

  • In a large bowl, beat the butter and confectioners sugar together until smooth.
  • Stir the grated hard boiled egg yolk, the raw egg yolk, the vanilla extract and the orange zest into the butter mixture. 
  • Add the flour, cinnamon and salt to the butter mixture and stir until blended.
  • Shape the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 30 min.

For the filling:

  • Chop the figs into four pieces each one and place them into a pan over medium heat along with the two types of sugar and the zest and juice of the lime.
  • Stir for about 15 min. until the mixture thickens. 
  • Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.
  • Now process it using a food processer or do it using a hand blender. 
  • Then pour into a sealed tupper or mason jar and refrigerate. 

To assemble the bars:

  • Take the dough out of the fridge and cut it into three equal pieces.
  • Take one of the pieces and, using kitchen plastic paper beneath (or any other that avoids the dough to stick to the kitchen counter), roll out the dough in a rectangle form to be about 0.5 cm. (cut the rest of dough if neccesary).
  • Fill vertically , and using the same plastic wrap, fold onto itself, first one side and then the other one, so that the filling gets totally covered.
  • Cover this rectangle in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 min. so it is easier to cut later.
  • Cut this dough into little squares and place them in previously greased oven pans.
  • Bake at 350°C for about 15 min. or until the edges start to turn gold. 
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Copycat fig newton bars

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1 comment

Almond plum cookies, crisp and sweet - HORNO MX 18 February, 2021 - 7:03 pm

[…] you like this recipe, you have to go see our fig newton bars, they are just […]

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