A delicious, sweet and chewy homemade fig rolls recipe that's a world away from the shop bought variety. This healthy fig rolls recipe is sweetened with fruit and contains no added refined sugar.
My youngest son has a penchant for fig rolls.
Should we ever pass the biscuit aisle in our local shop when he was little he would scream "FIG ROLLS PLEEEEAAASSSE" at the top of his voice.
At least he said please I suppose.
Are fig rolls healthy?
Fig rolls should be healthy shouldn't they?
They just sound like they are. And I imagine that a shop bought fig roll is healthier than your average biscuit.
It contains fruit after all - but fig rolls are still likely to contain less great ingredients such as palm oil, glucose syrup and salt.
Once I'd looked at the ingredients list I realised that it was high time I made some a homemade version of my little one's favourite biscuit.
How did the homemade fig rolls turn out?
These homemade fig rolls are delicious.
In my opinion they are a world apart from the shop bought version - the delicately spiced, chewy fig filling goes perfectly with the slightly crumbly homemade pastry.
They are free from added refined sugar - the only sugar in them comes from the figs, the lemon and a tiny bit of maple syrup. You could omit the maple syrup if you preferred.
I've added a tiny bit of ground ginger to the pastry to give it an extra kick - this is optional of course but I do think it adds a nice flavour.
Now I just need to avoid the biscuit aisle in the supermarket and keep on making these homemade fig biscuits and Little S will be happy!
Can you make these fig rolls with shop bought pastry?
Yes, you can use shop bought shortcrust pastry to make these fig rolls if you prefer.
However, it really isn't that difficult to make your own pastry and it tastes a lot better.
Other recipes that use dried figs
How to make homemade fig rolls
If you have made this recipe I would love it if you’d leave a comment and rating below. Thank you!
Please do not reproduce this recipe without permission.
Healthy homemade fig rolls
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 160 g plain flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- Pinch of salt optional
- 100 g cold butter or dairy free spread diced
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tablespoons milk
For the filling
- 200 g dried figs roughly chopped
- Zest and juice of half a lemon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons water
For brushing
- 1 beaten egg or a small bowl of milk optional
Instructions
To make the pastry
- Sift 160g plain flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ¼ teaspoon ground ginger and a pinch of salt into a mixing bowl.
- Rub in 100g diced butter or spread with your finger tips until you have the consistency of breadcrumbs
- Add the egg yolk and 1 tablespoon of the milk and mix until it starts to come together into a soft dough. Add the rest of the milk very slowly if you need to - you might not need it all.
- Knead lightly until it comes together then wrap in cling film and put in the fridge for a couple of hours or in the freezer for 20-30 minutes.
To make the filling
- Place 200g figs, the zest and juice of half a lemon, ½ teaspoon ground ginger, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, 2 tablespoons maple syrup and 3 tablespoons water into a small saucepan.
- Bring to a simmer and then cook over a low heat until most of the water has evaporated and you have a soft, jammy consistency. Set aside to cool.
To make the fig rolls
- Pre-heat the oven to 160°C (fan)/180°C/gas mark 4. Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.
- Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface into a large rectangle that is 5mm thick. Cut the pastry in half lengthways.
- Spoon half of the filling down one side of one of the strips of pastry, leaving a small gap on the side. Brush the gap with water, fold over the top and press to seal. Repeat with the other strip of pastry. Cut into 5cm rolls and place on a baking tray.
- Lightly brush with beaten egg or milk if preferred and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown.
Notes
Nutrition
Felicity Cloake's How to make the perfect fig rolls was a great starting point when I was preparing this recipe.
Pin homemade fig rolls for later
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NB: this recipe and photographs were updated in March 2019.
Fergal N
I would suggest at least doubling the amount of water to make the fig filling. Also i may have misunderstood "roughly cutting up" as i divided each fig in 4 parts but they didnt break up very much in the simmering and the filling ended up very stringy rather than jam like. Tasted nice but seemed alot of work for 10 fig roles; thats all i could get from the amounts anyway.
Mandy Mazliah
Hi Fergal, thanks for your comment. I usually get 12 fig rolls - maybe mine were slightly smaller. I'm not sure why your figs didn't go jam like - perhaps they were drier than the ones I usually use when I make them. Hope you enjoyed them anyway!
dan
Don't figs contain the wasp that pollinates it thereby making figs, and by extension fig rolls, non-vegan?
Mandy Mazliah
Hi Dan, this is a really complex issue that many vegans disagree on. Most commercially produced figs aren't pollinated by wasps and are therefore suitable for vegans. However, it's not easy to find out for sure whether the figs you buy are wasp free or not. You could probably use dates or prunes in place of the figs to make this recipe if you wanted.
Trish
Can these be made without the egg yolk? My son has an egg allergy, but I'd like to try these. He loves the shop bought ones, but thinking this might be a good way to get fibre into him ?
Mandy Mazliah
Hi Trish, the pastry might be crumblier without the egg but it’ll be ok. Or you could use shop bought shortcrust which doesn’t usually have egg in it. Let me know how they turn out.
Kirsty Hijacked By Twins
I have not had fig rolls in years! These look and sound so good and even better sugar free! Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
Mandy Mazliah
Thanks Kirsty - the last time I remembered eating them was on a coach trip across the channel as a teenager until my toddler discovered them! These are way better X
Angela / Only Crumbs Remain
My dad used to have a 'thing' about fig rolls too Mandy, at one point he had a stock pile of what must have been about 15 packets!! Seriously! Anyways mum has managed to ween him off them now! Great idea to make sugar free one for the little ones, it's amazing how easy they are to rustle up.Angela x
Mandy Mazliah
Ha ha! I love it. They must be addictive or something because my toddler just can't get enough of the things. Thanks for commenting x
Eb Gargano / easypeasyfoodie.com
Oooh these sound yum...what a great idea! But what I really want to know is, how did they go down with Little S??? Eb x
Mandy Mazliah
Ah - well I should have said in the post that he actually prefers the shop bought ones BUT his brother and sister preferred these and his sister doesn't even like the shop bought ones. Result! I will keep working on him though - I think I need to call them something different.