I hope you enjoy this “rerun” of a recipe I associate closely with Christmas. It’s my low-fat, veganized interpretation of the fig-filled cookies my husband’s grandmother always made for Christmas. D looked forward to those cookies every year, and once he married a vegan, his grandmother often made a special egg-free batch just for us. Sadly, she’s no longer with us, but I think of her whenever I make these fig bars.
I made an impulse buy the other day, one of those “rings” of dried figs. I’ve been missing fresh figs all summer, so when I saw these dried figs in the store, I bought them without thinking. But then they sat on my kitchen counter taunting me with memories of my yummy, but definitely not low-fat, Holiday Fig Bars. Since I’ve been trying to cut down on sugar and refined foods lately, making a batch of those bars would not be in my best interest.
But visions of fig bars persisted, as such cravings will when you have the primary ingredient sitting right on your kitchen counter. I finally broke down this afternoon, just in time for my afternoon pot of coffee (another substance I should probably give up but won’t), and made fig bars. Actually, I decided to make fig bars healthy. I revamped my recipe so that the oil is gone, the refined flour is history, and the sugar is . . . well, the sugar is reduced. It’s gotta have something in it besides figs, you know!
You will be amazed at how good these are. They’re low in everything, except flavor.
Skinny Figgy Bars
(click for printer-friendly version)
Filling:
8 ounces dried figs (one round package)
4 ounces pitted dates
2 tbsp. silvered or chopped almonds (optional)
2 drops anise extract (optional)
1 tbsp. agave nectar (or other liquid sweetener)
2 tbsp. water
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ginger
Snip off the figs’ stems, and put the figs, dates, and almonds into the food processor. Grind to a coarse paste. Stir in the remaining filling ingredients and process until mixed. Set aside.
Crust:
1 cup regular or quick oats, ground in blender until fine
1 cup regular or quick oats, uncooked (not instant oatmeal)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces unsweetened apple sauce
3 tbsp. agave nectar (or other liquid sweetener)
1/4 cup water
Preheat oven to 375 F. Combine the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Stir in the wet ingredients, mixing well to a thick consistency. Press half the crust mixture into the bottom of an oiled, eight-inch square cake pan (use a wooden spoon or your hands). Spread the fig mixture evenly over the crust. Smooth the remaining crust mixture over the filling. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool completely before cutting into bars.
Icing (optional):
Mix powdered sugar (about 3 tbsp.) with a little water (Start with 1/2 tsp.) until the right consistency. Add vanilla or almond extract to taste (just drops). Drizzle over top of bars before cutting.
Makes 16 bars. Each bar (with almonds) contains: 117 Calories (kcal); 1 g Total Fat; (10% calories from fat); 2 g Protein; 26 g Carbohydrate; 0 mg Cholesterol; 67 mg Sodium; 4 g Fiber
Happy Holidays to you all!
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I'm SusanV, and I love good food. Join me as I create delicious dishes made with whole foods and without a lot of processed fat and sugar. 
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{ 37 comments… read them below or add one }
I don't have a food processor..Could I use my blender for the food processor part?
I'm afraid that the mixture would just bog down in the blender. I think it'd be more successful if you chopped everything by hand and mashed it together in a bowl. Much more time consuming, though!
Hi Susan,
This is an excellent recipe, I'll try it these days. I wonder what can be used instead of agave nectar; it seems that is not as healthy as they say, might be a health food fraud
Thank you for the wonderful recipes,
Lucia
Tried these tonight! Tasty! I did not have oats so I used 1 c of sorghum flour, 1 c of brn rice flour, and 1/4 tsp of xanthan gum and I used blended mix raisins in water for sweetener. My kids and husband loved it! yay! Another vegan hit!
Thanks a mil, Susan!
I'm amazed by the looks of these fig bars already! what a delicious skinny treat!
I made these once before and despite going out with the dog and forgetting about them (had an extra 30minutes in the oven =P ) they were delicious! I had forgotten about them until now!
Hi Susan,
A comment above just reminded me that I forgot to report back on using fresh figs. I peeled and then pureed the figs and then cooked them in a saucepan until the figs had reached a paste-like consistency. This seemed to work out fine as they were delicious fig-newton-alikes!
I'm sure the dried figs would be even easier/less work, but for those who have fresh figs, there's definitely an option
I just picked about 5# of figs over the last two days and didn’t want the trouble of making jam. My husband mentioned that I should make homemade Fig Newtons, but I dreaded all of the sugar. I, too, am trying to cut back. This looked like the perfect recipe, except for the dried figs.
Thank you, Lexi for sharing your experience with fresh figs. It’s just what I need. I’m excited to see how they turn out. Keep you posted.
Thank you Susan V for yet another spectacular recipe.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to a -hands down -all time BEST vegan blogger on the net.
Have a Healthy Happy and Peaceful New Year. Rosemary
Hi again Susan!
Talk about being on the same page–I was making these yesterday as you were posting the recipe again, without knowing you had posted it. . .:) They do seem very Christmasy to me, too, and what a wonderful way to honor the memory of D's grandmother, and all our grandmothers who made us special Christmas treats.
To the person who asked about subbing quinoa flakes for oats at the top, here's my subjective experience: yes, they can work nicely alone or in combination with oats. In this particular recipe, which I have made many times, using certified gluten free oats, since I need to be gluten free too, I would suggest doing some combination. I think all quinoa flakes AND quinoa flour might be too strong of a taste, or a more grassy and less sweet taste that the oats seem to have. if you don't have gluten free oats available, I would try the quinoa flakes, and maybe sorghum flour, or a combination of sorghum and brown rice flour. .
Happy Holidays to all–this is one of my favorite recipes of Susan's and I love reading all the happy comments about them!
moonwatcher
these look so delicious! I can't even believe looking at the picture that these are butter-less
A wonderful keeper recipe!
my dad is obsesssedddd with fig newtons… I'm going to make him these as a healthy alternative! (he says fig newman's don't come close) I'll let you know how it goes! if you ever want to check out a raw dessert-my blog (thephilosophie.com) has a few! thanks again!
i'll be in touch!
I made these last week for my toddler in lieu of the pricey (albeit healthy) cereal bars he loves. We both LOVED them! I want to experiment with some different fruit fillings, since organic dates and figs are spendy where I live. Do you have any tips?
p.s. I love your blog. I'm normally a "fly by the seat of my pants" kind of girl in the kitchen, but have always relied on fats to make things taste good. You're changing my palate (and hopefully my waistline will follow!).
These can be made gluten free by getting oats that are safe, like Bob's Red mill or Lara's brand. I grind the oats and have done chocolate chip cookies this way. I'm dying to make these in the next few days!! Thanks for creating this.
I really don't know how to do things in the kitchen so I probably be contented looking at the figgy bars.
I am so thankful for your blog. I have tried some of your recipes and my family usually likes them a lot!! We are trying to be Vegan and Mcdougall style, so your blog is helpful. We sometimes will have some fish or meat on occasion.
I tried this Skinny Figgy Bar and I really love it. I have to be Gluten free , but I don't have a problem with oats. There is some controversy about oats, however Bob's does make a gluten free oat! Regular oats have not bothered me however.
Wow, these look GORGEOUS! Thank you so much for sharing the recipe, I've been looking for a great fig cookie and now I think I've found it. Can't wait to give them a try.
These are really beautiful and tempting. And, I'm so happy I can actually make and eat them (gluten-free & egg-free). Thanks for posting the recipe.
I want to try these sometime! I love how they look so good but are so healthy! Thanks!
These look fabulous Susan. This year I toyed around with the idea of drying some of the figs from our overly prolific trees…this is an inspiration to do so we can enjoy them all year. I love a recipe that reminds me of someone…it's like having them in the kitchen with you! Happy New Year…
This looks like an amazing recipe and I will try it for sure.
Do you think it's possible to swtich the oats for buckwheat or millet flakes?
Also I don't use isolated sugars like agave, any advice if I want to cut it out? Maybe add a bit more applesauce to the crust and dates/figs for the filling?
Thank you for an awesome blog!
As a coffee drinker myself, I'm always looking for a good reason to keep it in my menu. As a researcher who keeps up on projects, I have come across several studies that show numerous health benefits of coffee, so don't feel guilty about it! Enjoy!
http://www.sciencedaily.com/search/?keyword=coffee
OMG, just made these and I am in heaven, so glad to read they freeze well because otherwise I might eat the whole batch today and that would kind of negate the healthy aspect…
p.s. I am seeing these as healthy apricot squares too, keeping the dates for sweetness and subbing for the figs for dried apricots, will be sure to comment back if I try it. Anyone else tried a different fruit filling?
whoa, mama – do these sound fabulous!!! Since becoming gluten free, I have missed fig newtons more than any other cookie. I am going to try these this weekend using Bob's Red Mill gluten free oats. thank you for such a fabulous recipe!
delish. if i do apricots do i sub it for the figs or dates… thanks
I haven't tried it but for apricot bars, I'd replace the figs with apricots.
HI Susan,
You know I love these figgy bars, and have made them more times than I care to count, but the other day I was musing about how to get more cranberries in my diet, and I started wondering if I could come up with a cranberry filling for these, using your filling recipe as a template. This is what I did:
I plumped about a cup of dried cranberries in some water that had come to the boil in the tea kettle for a few minutes. I also threw in a handful of raisins.
I put the drained cranberries and raisins in the food processor with two dates (that was all I had, but it really was all I needed), a tbs of orange juice instead of the lemon juice, for the water I used the soaking water, some orange zest, a dash of anise extract, and to the ginger and cinnamon, I added some cardamom. I also used the almonds.
This filling spread quite easily, even with a spatula. I also added a pinch of anise extract to the batter.
Anyway, here's another version, to stand alongside these wonderful fig bars.
Thanks for inspiring me!
moonwatcher
I do not have much experience with figs. Does it matter in this recipe which type of dried figs are used? I have some Turkish dried figs at home now and thought I could incorporate them.
Tia, I think any dried figs should do.
Susan,
(I also just posted a similar comment on the Pumpkin and Black Bean Casserole recipe) My recently vegan-convert and gluten free roomie and I made these bars, gluten free of course, and we can't stop drooling over them! They are seriously good and we both agree that they don't taste homemade and could easily have come from a high end bakery or something!
I have referenced you and your recipes multiple times in my own blog and I really hope vegans and non vegans alike will give these bars a try. They're too good to miss!
Thank you for sharing this one, I know this is only the first batch of many!
Claire
girlwhoplayswithfood.blogspot.com
WOW! sure looks delicious!
Thanks for the recipe.
This has become a regular in our house. Just the right amount of sweetness, easy to make, Works despite various mistakes like not having dates, putting all the crust on the bottom (open faced!) Thanks Susan.
mmmmmmmm, this oat-ie base will definitely be used in the future, anything to recreate digestive biscuits, that i think are oatmeal cookies in the u.s!!!!!!!
Think of the summer time possibilities for this recipe!
very happy student sending ‘figgy’ toothed smiles lol Xxx
I’m a bit confused when you say
“1 cup regular or quick oats, ground in blender until fine
1 cup regular or quick oats, uncooked (not instant oatmeal)”
does that mean the first cup IS cooked and put in the blender as well?
No, both are uncooked, but one cup is ground and the other isn’t.
Damn you and your skinny figgy bars!!!! They are so good, I can’t stop eating them. I did not add the icing, they were plenty sweet without that. I love sweets and these are addictive! Great recipes here, I have made several, but the figgy bars are my favorite.
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