Fresh figs are terribly delicate, and would just go to mush in bread.
I haven't made such a bread, but I have done a lot of breads with
fruit and always start with dried fruit, sometimes chopped coarsely,
sometimes very finely, depending on whether I want nuggets of fruit
or fruitiness. For a mildly flavored fig, I think chunks would be
best, and I'd hydrate them in hot water for an hour or so prior to
use. Add the softened fruit at the end of the main kneading or, roll
it in when shaping if you're going to do a long slow rise (don't want
the fruit to ferment). About 1 cup of dried fruit to 1lb or 500g
flour should make a nice, figgy bread.
And for the anise, I would mill dried aniseseed in when I grind my
wheat berries, but for most people a practical alternative is to take
whole aniseseed and crush it coarsely in a mortar or grind it in a
spice grinder. I'd use about a teaspoon per loaf.
Not being one to let well enough alone, I'd probably throw in a bit
of citrus zest and maybe a pinch of cardamom to make the flavors pop.
--diane in los angeles