Fig Crumble Oatmeal Bars

Did you guys grow up with Fig Newtons? I did - and I loved those cookies. The outer cookie part was the best - I used to snap off the curved sides of the cookie, eat those little "crusts" first, then pinch apart the rest of the figgy part before I ate it. Okay, probably not good table manners, but you know how people have a specific way that they'll eat an Oreo? We weren't allowed to have Oreos (another blog post entirely), so Fig Newtons were my cookie of choice. Last night I found out something horrifying - The Mr. didn't try an actual Fig Newton until far too late in life (we're talking college) - and he didn't like it. Quelle horreur! But get this - he'd had Newtons before, just not the fig variety. What the?! He'd had apple Newtons, cherry, even blueberry (none of which appear to exist anymore) - but no fig. I find this odd. And apparently the big guns over at Nabisco gave up on the whole "fig" appeal anyway. I know some people aren't huge fans of figs - I grew up on them, so I've always loved them - we had a green fig tree in the backyard and I used to eat figs right off the tree. But fig is the original Newton flavor, right? In any case, I actually think Fig Newmans have it all over the  Fig Newton, but then again how can you resist a cookie with Paul Newman's face on the package? BUT! Back to the point - my husband doesn't like Fig Newtons, so I had to find a way to change his mind. I bought some dried black mission figs last week and as I walked past the aisle with the jams/jellies, I saw fig butter. Like apple butter - but figs! It's basically just really thick fig preserves, and it's unbelievably delicious (oh, did I mention I bought it? I did). So...fig butter, dried figs...it's time to make some fig cookies. I thumbed through some old recipes in my binder and decided to do a sort of oatmeal crumble bar layered with the fig butter, and add in some chopped figs, almonds, and cardamom. And the result? AWESOME. It's like a healthier, crumblier version of a Fig Newton! A Fig Jessica, perhaps? In any case I think The Mr. only got a few of these because I devoured them pretty quickly. Theyr'e nostalgic and yummy and more wholesome than store-bought! 

Fig Crumble Oatmeal Bars

inspired by Whole Foods

serves 16

Ingredients:

• 1 cup old fashioned oats
• 1 cup whole grain spelt flour
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp table salt
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup dried black mission figs, roughly chopped
• 5 Tbsp coconut oil
• 5 Tbsp freshly squeezed (or just really high-quality) orange juice
• 1/2 cup fig butter

1. Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly mist an 8x8 baking dish with cooking spray or gently grease with a tiny bit of coconut oil.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the oats, flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom, almonds, and figs. Add oil and 3 Tbsp of the orange juice, mixing well with a spatula until fully combined. Reserve 1/2 cup of the oat mixture and gently press the rest of it into your prepared baking dish. 
3. Mix the remaining 2 Tbsp orange juice with the fig butter in a small bowl. Spread this evenly over the oat mixture in the pan. Sprinkle the reserved oat mixture over the fig butter, gently pressing the crumbs down with your fingertips.
4. Bake for 30-35 minutes until golden brown. Cool in the pan on a cooling rack before slicing into 16 bars. These can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days.