Cucciddati:The Extra Famous Sicilian Figs Cookies

Cucciddati is a filled cookie with different types of dry fruits and spices. And these cookies are more popular during the holidays. These are very tasty cookies and their fillings are also very delicious and the main ingredients inside the fillings are dried figs, with dry fruits, jam and many spices like cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.

If we make this recipe at home, it is very easy to make and you can preserve it for a month and it can also be given as a gift to people. The filling of these cookies is very delicious due to the combination of tropical raisins and dry fruits like walnuts, almonds, nuts, etc., and flavors like cinnamon, black pepper, orange peel etc. And the taste of this filing is further enhanced by dark chocolate, Marsala and zuccata because they give it a special aroma and taste.

CONTENT OF RECIPE

Ingredients / Ingredienti	For pastry 4 cups of all purpose flour 1/2 cup of superfine sugar 1/4 cup of butter 1/4 cup of lard 2 egg yolks 2 tsp of baking powder A pinch of salt 100 ml. (2/5  cup) of milk
	For filling: 14 oz of dried figs 2/3 cup of raisins 2/3 cup of apricot jam 1//2 cup of dark chocolate chips 1/2 cup of pistachios 1/3 cup of walnuts 1/3 cup of peeled hazelnuts 1/3 cup of almonds 1/3 cup of zuccata 1/2 grated orange zest 1/2 tsp of cinnamon powder A pinch of black pepper 1/4 cup of Marsala
	For glaze: 1 egg white 1 cup of icing sugar 1 tbsp of lemon juice Colored sprinkles
Baking Time / Tempo di cottura	(1) 25 to 30 minutes (2) 5 minutes
Baking Temperature / Temperatura di cottura	(1) 350°F ~ 176°C (2) 240°F ~ 15.6°C
Utensils / Utensili	Bowl Butter paper Plastic wrap Frying Pan Serving Plate
Baking Method / Metodo di cottura	Oven (Forno)

ORIGIN

This is a very old Sicilian recipe and it has been widely spread so there are many variations and even names are slightly different.

METHOD

Step 1: First we will prepare the pastry, for this we take a bowl and put the flour in it.

Step 2: Add yolks, sugar, lard and butter in flour and mix well.

Step 3: We will also use a pinch of salt in it and then add milk little by little and keep mixing it.

Step 4: Then we will mix the baking powder in it and add the rest of the milk.

Step 5: Knead this dough for two minutes

Step 6: Cover this dough with plastic wrap and keep it in the fridge for half an hour.

Step 7: Cut the dried figs.               

Step 7: Then in the frying pan we will roast the dry fruits.

Step 9: Blend these hot dry fruits well and then add chopped figs, jam and marsala and further blend it.

Step 10: Now we are going to add chocolate, pepper, cinnamon and orange zest to it and you can also use zuccata.

Step 11: Blend all these ingredients again and mix the jam and raisins by hand.

Step 12: Filling is ready.

Step 13: Divide the dough into two parts and roll it well until it is 5 cm thick.

Step 14: Now to shape the dough we will cut it into a rectangular shape corresponding to 20 x 15 cm.

Step 15: After flattening the dough nicely, we will place the filling on top of it and join the rectangular sides.

Step 16: We will seal it well.

Step 17: Our cookies should not break and then it is very important to give it a rest. So, we will cover these rolls with plastic wrap and keep them in the refrigerator for an hour.

Step 18: Cut the rolls into pieces by measuring its width with our two fingers.

Step 19: We will place these pieces on a baking sheet lined with butter paper and bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit  for 25 to 30 minutes.

Step 20: Now we prepare the glaze.

Step 21: For this we have to add the sugar and egg white in a bowl and beat them well.

Step 22: After that add the lemon juice and mix it too.

Step 23: Dip the top layer of cookies into this prepared icing.

Step 24: We’ll bake them again for five minutes in a preheated oven at 240 degrees Fahrenheit.

Step 25: We will sprinkle and water brushing on our cucciddati.

Step 26: Now our cucciddati is ready to serve.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What does cuccidati mean in English?

Cuccidati means cookies which have figs and dry fruits filling in it.

What is fig cookie gender?

Fig is not a male or female. It is non-binary.

How many calories are in a cuccidati cookie?

Everyone makes it according to their choice. Thus calories count is not specific .It may differ. But generally it consists of 160 to 200 cl.

Is fig a fruit in Islam?

Yes, fig’s name is present in the Holy Quran. The Quran says ’’I swear by the fig and the olive’’.

What is fig called in English?

Fig is an English name. And in Urdu we called it "anjeer’’.