Lightly crispy on the outside, soft and bursting with flavor on the inside, these fig and orange roll up cookies are a delicious combination of sweet and slightly tart jam rolled up into sweet and fragrant dough. Something about the flavor and consistency of these cookies always makes me think of rugalach cookies or nut-roll cookies, etc.
Definitely a cookie recipe to save for a special treat, or maybe just for a cozy day in with a hot cup of tea!
Roll-up cookies are one of those things that somehow manage to look difficult to make but are in fact super easy once you get the hang of it. The short of it is that you roll out some dough, spread a filling over it, roll it all up, slice it and bake. Like pinwheel cookies with a jammy middle. It's the kind of "fancy" -- yet totally no-fuss -- baking I can always get behind!
Quick note: the prep time for this recipe is a little longer than most of my recipes, but the "active baking time" of actually doing something is super quick. You just need to allocate time to let the filling ingredients soak a little before getting started, and also keep in mind the cookies will need to be frozen for an hour before baking them. But waiting is always the hardest part of baking, isn't it? ;)
The flavors in this particular recipe happen to be among my favorite combinations (especially around the holidays and during citrus season). The citrus really cuts down through the sweetness of dried figs and makes both flavors pop.
Orange and fig are always a great pair in my opinion, but if you really want to take this recipe up a notch, I highly recommend trying these with some freshly made tangerine juice as a variation (if you have access to a juicer). It really brightens the cookies up and gives the recipe that "extra something."
If you happen to enjoy this recipe, you might also like to give these chocolate vanilla pinwheel cookies a try, or this cashew poppy seed recipe. These are both the "ancestors" of this recipe, which ultimately led me to the creation of this orange and fig variation :)
Fig and Orange Roll-Up Cookies
These fig and orange roll-up cookies are lightly crispy on the outside, soft and bursting with flavor on the inside. Vegan and Gluten-Free.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 16 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 16 minutes
- Yield: 11-12 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Dessert, Vegan
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
Filling
- 110 gr (approx. 3⁄4 cup) dried figs -- whole, with tough stem discarded*
- 1⁄2 cup orange juice (or tangerine juice) -- best if it has some pulp in it**
- 1 tbsp cashew butter
- 1⁄2 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1/16 tsp salt
Cookie Dough
- 6 tbsp white rice flour
- 2 tbsp cashew butter
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tsp pure orange extract
- 1/16 tsp salt
Topping
- powdered cashew milk (or coconut milk or icing sugar) for dusting
Instructions
1. Making the Filling:
Place the dried figs and orange/tangerine juice in a small bowl together and set aside for about ½ an hour to soak and soften.
Then add the soaked figs (along with any unabsorbed juice) as well as all the other filling ingredients in a small food processor and process to combine everything into a thick spread consistency (you want it to be easily spreadable, not runny. So if it's on the runny side add a bit more cashew butter and process again.
2. Making the dough:
Process all cookie dough ingredients in a food processor until the mixture begins to form a ball (note if the mixture is too sticky, add a bit more flour, if too dry, add a bit more maple syrup).
Form the mixture into a ball with your hands and knead briefly, then flatten into a disk.
Place the disk between two sheets of parchment paper on a flat surface and use a rolling pin to roll out into an ⅛” thickness, and roughly the shape of a rectangle. Remove the top layer of parchment and set aside (leaving the base resting on the bottom parchment sheet for now).
3. Assembly:
Spread the filling mixture in a thin layer over the dough, leaving about ½ an inch clean all around the edges. Note: you'll have some mixture leftover (about ¼ cup or so) which is normal, just set it aside and use it as a spread :)
Starting at on long edge of the rectangle, carefully roll up the two layers into a long, tight log (I use the bottom sheet of parchment paper to help by lifting one of the sides of the rolled out dough and rolling it up from there).
Wrap the log tightly in the parchment paper it was sitting on and place in the freezer for 1 hour to firm up slightly (this will help the filling layer not to be too runny for the slicing stage).
4. Baking:
Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside for a moment.
Remove the cookie log from the freezer, carefully place it on a cutting board and unwrap it. Cut it into slices that are just under an inch thick, and carefully place the cookies on the baking tray (positioned as though they are still rolled up into a log, i.e. not on their side). You should get somewhere close to 11 cookies (plus 2 edge pieces).
Bake for 15-16 minutes until the cookies are nice and golden.
Remove the tray from oven and allow the cookies to cool (they will firm up a bit as they cool). If desired, sprinkle with some powdered non-dairy milk (cashew or coconut milk powders are great for this; or alternatively use icing sugar if you prefer). Enjoy!
Notes
* Use dried figs that are fully dehydrated (i.e. typical grocery store dried figs and not the kinds that are sold as "dried" but labelled "soft and juicy", etc.). The reason you want them on the fully dry side is so they absorb more of the orange juice in and blend into a thick filling consistency. Otherwise you might end up with a filling that's too runny, which will make for messy cookies.
** I like these with tangerine juice (I used homemade), but the recipe works great with pulpy orange juice as well.
Keywords: Fig and Orange Roll-Up Cookies (Gluten-Free, Vegan)
Melissa says
Hi Audrey, this is a nice recipe. My husband and I will enjoy it very much. Can you substitute the cashew butter for sunflower butter? We have allergies to cashews.
Thanks,
Melissa
★★★★★
Audrey says
Hi Melissa. I think sunflower seed butter might work fine. I prefer the cashew butter usually -- I find the flavor of it more subtle compared to other butters, and somehow the dough comes out a touch better. But an alternative butter can def work here. Almond butter would be another good one.