Wow, I cannot believe I have had the stand mixer for this long and not posted a recipe using it! Unacceptable! Thankfully, I found this recipe, which is practically designed to be used with the stand mixer. Seriously, this recipe a snap with it. The bars come together very quickly and it was mesmerizing watching everything get combined so easily. How did I ever bake without a stand mixer?!
These are usually called Food for the Gods and are a Filipino holiday treat. I’ve renamed them though because traditional bars have dates and the first time I made these with dates, I wasn’t in love with the date aspect. They were good, but the dates weren’t working for me. I had some leftover dried figs from the crostata and decided that I, a mere mortal, would tinker with the Food for the Gods. If I get struck by lightening, this is why.
But the figs in the bars are delicious! But perhaps I am partial to figs, so if you like dates, feel free to sub them back in. The bars are amazing either way, how could they not be with the scary amount of butter in them. I read the original recipe three time to make sure that I wasn’t overbuttering, but it really does call for three sticks! And all the nuts makes them very dense. So cut them into small squares and share the calories with others. Otherwise you’ll be like me, staring at an empty plate wondering where all the bars went.
Delicious Fig Bars
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman/Ivory Hut
Serves 16-20
Ingredients
8 ounces dried figs (around 1 1/2 Cups)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 whole eggs
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cups white sugar
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter (3 sticks)
1 cup walnuts
1 1/2 cups pecans (the proportion of the nuts is not important, so if you have more walnuts or only pecans, it makes no difference)
Preheat oven to 350. Melt the butter in the microwave and let it cool slightly. Dip a pastry brush in the melted and butter a 9×12 pan or two 8×8 pans, making sure to grease the sides and corners well.
Chop nuts (or place them in two ziploc bags and beat them with your hands). They should be chunky, but broken up. Slice the figs in half and then each half in half again (resulting in quarters that are long). Set figs and nuts aside in a bowl.
Sift the flour, salt, and baking powder into a bowl. Set aside.
Pour melted butter into your stand mixer and add the brown and white sugars. Mix well until incorporated. Add in each egg, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the vanilla and mix to incorporate.
Remove 1/4 cup of flour from the reserved mixture and pour into fig and nut mixture. Using your hands, mix well, making sure that the figs are floured lightly. This prevents them from sticking to each other and making a goopy mess. Use more of the flour mixture if needed.
Mix in the rest of the flour mixture with the wet ingredients. Do this in thirds, and mix until just incorporated. Pour in dredged figs and nuts with the batter and fold to combine. Mixture will be dense and heavy, so by hand is better.
Pour the batter (it will be very thick) onto the buttered pan(s). Bake for 30-40 minutes, until light golden brown. The bars are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with moist crumbs. If the edges look done, take it out. The bars are forgiving though (all that butter!), so even if you overbake, they will still taste good. Let cool, and cut into squares or bars. Store these in an airtight container. They will stay moist if wrapped tightly.
I LUUUUURRRRVVVEEED them with dates!!!