Fig Newtons

You will need to start with about 1lb of figs.

Chop them finely in the food processor.

Put about a cup of water in a pot . . .

. . . and mix in the chopped figs. Allow this to sit at room temperature for about 1 hour so the figs can re-hydrate.

Meanwhile, mix together 1/2 cup of butter, 1 egg, a splash of milk, a few drops of vanilla, a pinch of salt, a teaspoon of baking powder, a cup of sugar, and 1.75 cups of flour.

Mix until combined and smooth.

Divide the dough into two even portions and refrigerate for 1 hour.

After the figs have soaked, mix in 1 cup of sugar.

Cook the fig mixture over medium heat until is is almost the consistency of a jam. Watch this carefully as it cooks, as all of the sugar in there would make an awful mess if it burned on the bottom of the pot.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. You want a sheet with at least 0.5" to 0.75" sides.

Retrieve one of the dough portions from the refrigerator.

Knuckle it out a bit.

On a well floured work surface, roll the dough to a uniform thickness, and use it to line the bottom of the baking sheet.

Spread on the fig filling.

Roll out some parchment paper, and flour it liberally. Roll the dough to a uniform thickness as before.

Take the dough on the parchment paper, and roll the whole thing around your rolling pin. This will allow you to easily transfer it to the top of the baking sheet by simply unrolling it from the pin.

Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.

The top should be just browned in spots.

Slice into squares for optimal recognition. Enjoy.