Ultimate Cook Book_ 900 New Recipes, Thousands of Ideas - Bruce Weinstein [376]
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup granulated sugar
½ cup solid vegetable shortening
3 large eggs, at room temperature
Place the figs and raisins in a food processor fitted with the chopping blade. Process until finely chopped, then pulse a few more times until the mixture gathers together in a sticky ball.
Scrape the fig mixture into a medium saucepan set over medium heat. Stir in 3/4 cup brown sugar, the lemon juice, water, brandy or orange juice, and cinnamon.
Cook, stirring almost constantly, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture begins to bubble, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool completely, about 1 hour (or cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours).
Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Whisk both flours, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
Beat the granulated sugar, shortening, and the remaining ¼ cup brown sugar in a large bowl, using an electric mixer at medium speed, until creamy and smooth, about 4 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition.
Turn off the beaters, add the flour mixture, and beat at low speed just until a smooth dough starts to form. Remove the beaters and divide the dough into thirds.
Sprinkle a few drops of water on your work surface, then lay a large sheet of wax paper over them. Sprinkle the wax paper with a little flour, then place one part of the dough on it. Press down gently to flatten, dust with flour, and lay a second sheet of wax paper over the dough.
Roll the dough between the sheets of wax paper until it forms a 12 x 5-inch rectangle. Peel off the top sheet of wax paper.
Spread a third of the fig mixture (about 1 cup) the long way down the middle of the rectangle. Leave a ½-inch border at each end and about an inch down each of the long sides of the rectangle. Fold one long side over onto the other so that you create a tube. Seal the long ends well, then crimp the short ends closed. Transfer the log to the prepared baking sheet and repeat steps 7, 8, and 9 with the other two pieces of dough and the remaining filling, leaving about 2 inches of space between the logs on the baking sheet.
Bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes.
To cool and slice: Leave the logs on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack and cool completely (do not pick them up; transfer them with spatulas to keep them from breaking apart in the middle). Cool for 1 hour, then slice into 1-inch pieces (the very ends will be pretty worthless—not much filling; they should be cut off and discarded).
To store: They can be kept in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Variations: Reduce the dried figs to 8 ounces and add 8 ounces dried Turkish apricots.
Add ¼ cup chopped slivered almonds with the brown sugar to the fig mixture.
For a fun dessert, use all the dough and filling to create one huge filled log, then bend it into a ring before baking; bring to the table to slice off individual cookies or servings.
Rugelach
These cakey rolls are often made with jam, but we prefer them with a simpler filling of walnuts and raisins. Makes about 36 rugelach
16 tablespoons cool unsalted butter, cut into chunks
8 ounces cream cheese, cut into chunks
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped walnut pieces
½ cup packed light brown sugar
½ cup chopped raisins
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Beat the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until softened, about 3 minutes. Beat in the granulated sugar until smooth, about 3 minutes.
Turn off the beaters, add the flour and salt, and beat at low speed until a soft dough forms. Gather the dough together, divide