Holiday Cooking: Sicilian Fig Cookies - Part II

Clara's Holiday Special!

Cucidati Fig Cookies Part I

Recipe:
Cucidati Cookies (Sicilian Cookies by Clara)

FILLING

Boil 2 cups of water and add 1/2 cups sugar. Let cook.

3/4 cups shelled hazel nuts
1/2 cups shelled almonds
1/2 cups shelled walnuts
1/2 cups shelled pecans

Toast all nuts on cookie sheet separately (different nuts take different times to toast).

Grind together with nuts:
1/2 lb. diced candied fruit
1/4 lb. dark raisins
1/4 lb. light raisins
1/4 lb. dates (pitted)
1 orange with rind
1 dried tangerine with rind
2 lbs. figs or (2 packages or atleast 14 oz. apiece)

Mix well all the ground ingredients.

Add 1/2 or 3/4 of the cooled sugar water to make a nice soft mixture (be careful not to make it too soft).

Save the rest of the sugar water mixture.

Add 1/2 cup whiskey to ground ingredients.

Mix well and let stand overnight. Keep in a fridge or cool place.

You may need to add the sugar-water the next day.


DOUGH

10 cups flour
1 lb lard
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup cold milk
2 heaping table spoons baking powder
1 table spoon vanilla
12 eggs

Work flour and lard like you would pie crust.

Melt sugar in milk.

Beat egg and add vanilla.

When flour and lard are mixed well, add baking powder, then add the other ingredients and mix until you have a nice liable dough.

Let stand at least one hour, or this can be made the day before. Cover with a clean dish towel and put in the fridge or a cool place.

Roll dough.

Fill with filling (you can use a pastry bag). Cut and bake on ungreased cookie sheet at 350 until golden brown.

If you like icing, mix milk, powdered sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla (preferably white vanilla). Brush on cookies and sprinkle with little colored candies.


COMPLETE INGREDIENT LIST

-Flour
-Lard
-Sugar
-Milk
-Baking Powder
-Eggs
-Powdered Sugar
-White Vanilla
-Little colored candies for topping
-Filbert nuts (or Hazel nuts)
-Almonds
-Walnuts
-Pecans
-Candied fruit
-Dark raisins
-Light raisins
-Dates
-1 Orange
-1 Tangerine rind
-2 packages of figs or at least 14oz. apiece
-Whiskey


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Category:

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[daw162]

haha...no conversation with a grandmother is complete without advocating that the food will keep you regular.

[apocalyptica003]

Clara ended world hunger with that batch of cookies.

[QueenDairylolz]

"they're good if you're constipated" LMAO! I love Clara!!

[11dimention11]

I have a similar holiday story about going down the stairs and falling, but in my story I’m carrying an alcoholic beverage and not one drop spilled. :o) Well, thank you for the technique. I read about these treats years ago and never tried them out; they called them x-cookies in that book.

I think I’ll give them a try now.

[LadyLightningStrike]

Love it love it!!!

[butopiatoo]

BRAVO CLARA!!!

[Candree2]

I love the picture of The Last Supper above the kitchen table. I'm definitely going to make these for Christmas, and dye my hair when I get old:)

[ladynur80]

yummy!!

[leobrat12]

@EcoEnvious that's what my grandmother used to do!

[Uncrazamatic]

My Italian aunt on my step dad's side of the family would make these.Last time I had them was back in the early 70s.

[EcoEnvious]

I love the bedsheet idea because I don't have a lot of space in my kitchen. Thank you for posting these videos. I didn't know how to put it all together just by reading the recipe, I needed to see how it's done. When I make mine, I'll be thankful the fact that this recession is nothing at all as bad as the Great Depression.

[TheCatholicFaithfu]

Oh, I am in tears. This is one of my all-time favorite videos of all times, and not just because I am part Italian, from NY, and happen to love love love Christmas fig cookies. This woman is so funny. If other cooks on tv were this funny and straight-forward, I'd be interested in watching them.