Vanilla Fig Old Fashioned

Name: Vanilla Fig Old Fashioned
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 15 min
Ingredients: ½ cup granulated sugar; ½ cup water; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste; 8 dried black mission figs; 12 ounces bourbon whiskey (1 ½ cups); 18 dashes angostura bitters (3 dashes per drink); 6 2-inch orange peels; 3 fresh figs (if available) (sliced in half); ice to fill each glass

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Try this simple twist on a classic drink in under 15 minutes! This vanilla fig old fashioned is a fun way to change things up. Enjoy the fresh, sweet flavor of fruity figs mixed with oaky bourbon during peak fig season (the fall) or any time of the year!

A vanilla fig old fashioned garnished with an orange peel and fresh fig.

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📋 About the Recipe
🛒 Ingredients
📓 Instructions
🔍 FAQs
💭 One More Tip
🍴 Related Recipes
📖 Recipe

📋 About the Recipe

This simple recipe takes the classic old fashioned and turns it up a notch. With elegant additions, like vanilla bean and fig, it's a great drink for any occasion!
The unique flavor of figs goes really well with the oaky-caramel flavors in bourbon.
Unfortunately, fresh figs can be tricky to find in your grocery store because they are very seasonal and don't have a long shelf-life. Their fresh season is typically in the fall, August through October. However, since this recipe primarily uses dried figs (which can be found at your local store any time of the year), you can still make this delicious cocktail year-round!
With the warm, comforting flavors of bourbon and vanilla, this can also be a great holiday season drink! Serve this easy drink recipe on Thanksgiving or Christmas and wow your to guests all season long.
If you're as big of a fan of bourbon as I am, you might also like these bourbon pecan brie bites, bourbon glazed salmon meatballs, or cast iron bourbon caramel apple crisp paired with your drink!

🛒 Ingredients

A few notes about the ingredients:

Bourbon - bourbon whiskey is naturally a sweeter alcohol with notes of oak, vanilla, and caramel. The subtle sweetness of the figs mixed with the vanilla adds great depth of flavor to the drink. For best flavor, purchase good quality bourbon, but stay within your budget.
Angostura bitters - angostura bitters can be found in the "cocktail mixer" aisle of your grocery store. It's in a small, dark bottle with a white label and yellow cap. This adds the authentic old fashioned flavor to the drink, so don't skip out on it!
Figs - This recipe primarily uses dried figs so it can be made any time of the year. Dried figs can be found in the nut and dried fruit aisle of your grocery store or near the salad toppings in the produce aisle. Fresh figs are just used for garnish and can be found in the produce aisle when in season.

📓 Instructions

1. Make the vanilla fig simple syrup by combining the sugar, water, vanilla extract or paste, and dried figs in a saucepan over medium low heat.

Dried figs, sugar, water, and vanilla paste in a saucepan.

2. Bring the mixture to a simmer. Gently smash the figs on the side of the pan to help infuse their flavor into the syrup. Stir to combine, then simmer for 5 minutes, or until the sugar completely dissolves.

3. Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature. Remove and discard the figs along with any other large pieces, or strain through a mesh colander.

Bourbon poured into rocks glasses with ice.

4. In each old fashioned glass (or rocks glass) filled with ice, add 2 ounces (¼ cup) of bourbon, 3 dashes of angostura bitters, and 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) of vanilla fig simple syrup. Stir to combine.

5. Garnish each drink with a large orange peel and fresh fig, if available.

3 fig old fashioneds with orange peel and fig and angostura bitters in the background.

🔍 FAQs

What is an old fashioned?

An old fashioned is a cocktail made with bourbon, sugar, and bitters, garnished with an orange slice and a cherry.

What is angostura bitters?

Angostura bitters is a cocktail mixer of concentrated herbs and spices used to add flavor to drinks. It contains alcohol but is most often consumed diluted in a drink instead of on it's own.

It has an herbal, spiced taste and can be found in the "cocktail mixer" aisle of your grocery store. It comes in a dark bottle with a white over-sized label and a yellow cap.

What is simple syrup?

Simple syrup is a sweet syrup made from equal parts water and sugar. The mixture is briefly heated until the sugar fully dissolves in the water and it becomes a syrup-like consistency.

Simple syrups are often flavored. This is done by adding additional ingredients to the water and sugar and simmering it all together until the flavor infuses into the syrup.

How do you eat figs?

Figs can be eaten whole with both the skin and seeds intact, just remove the stem. Figs can also be eaten raw or cooked.

What do figs taste like?

Figs are soft fruits with a very thin skin. They have a sweet, honey-like flavor with a hint of fruity berry.

💭 One More Tip

Adjust the sweetness of this cocktail by adding a small amount of fig simple syrup to the drink at a time. Taste it, then decide to add a bit more if it needs more sweetness.

Additionally, as the ice in the drink melts, it will weaken it a bit. The drink may seem strong at first, then mellow out over time.

Fig old fashioned with fresh figs, ice, and an orange peel.

Share your cooking with me! If you make this recipe, I'd love to know! Tag @yourhomemadehealthy on Instagram or leave a comment with a rating and some feedback at the bottom of this page!

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