125gbutter(European style - unsalted, cold, and cubed )
1egg(small, room temperature)
1tspvanilla extract(pure)
INCLUSIONS
90gdried figs( 5 figs, diced)
75galmonds(toasted and coarsely chopped)
INSTRUCTIONS
PREPARATION
Gather all the ingredients and preheat the oven to 175ºC/350ºF.
Coarsely chop the almonds and dried figs. Set aside.
MAKE THE DOUGH
Add all dry ingredients into a bowl of a food processor. Pulse until all the ingredients are well incroporated.
Add the butter and pulse until there are no big chunks of butter visible.
Whisk the egg and the vanilla extract in a small bowl. Add the mixture to the food processor and pulse to combine.
Add all the inclusions and pulse to combine.
Dump the dough onto a clean working surface lightly dusted with flour. Knead the dough only enough to shape into a disc - Note 1.
MAKE THE COOKIES
Roll out the dough to 0.5cm/0.4in in thickness.
Cut out the cookies with a cookie cutter of your choosing. Place the cookies on the baking sheet with parchment paper. Repeat the process with dough scraps until there are no more scraps left.
Place the cookies in the refrigerator to cool and firm up for about 15 minutes.
BAKING
Brush the cookies with a thin layer of egg white and sprinkle with demerara sugar, or add some slivered or crushed almonds. Alternatively, leave them as they are.
Bake for 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature before serving - Note 2.
NOTES
At this point, you can wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge overnight and continue the next day.
The cookies will be soft while still hot. As they cool down, they will become nice and crisp.
The carob powder is optional in this recipe; however, if you have some on hand, do try it out. It gives a beautiful aroma to the cookies.