Tag: hamantashen

Hamantashen (Raspberry and Apricot)

hamantashen 2

 

 

 

 

 

Today marks the Jewish festival of Purim, as well as Mike’s 36th birthday, and I couldn’t let my Jewish husband’s birthday pass without baking this traditional Purim treat.

For our Purim celebration last year, I made poppy seed hamantashen, and that dough, while not as pliable as this recipe, stayed together much better during baking. Mike liked the taste of that dough better as well, so I think I’ll go back to my original recipe next time. It’s amazing how many recipes exist for the same treat; you can scour cookbooks, online recipe hubs, and blogs and probably find dozens of varieties. This is another thing that I love about baking; there are so many possibilities.

Ingredients

  • 1/3cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons orange juice
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2 1/2 ounces cream cheese, cut into chunks
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • About 3 tablespoons each raspberry jam and apricot preserves

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a mixing bowl, cream together sugar, vegetable oil, orange juice, egg, and vanilla.

Add cream cheese and beat until combined.

Add baking powder, salt, and flour; beat until the dough forms a ball.

Tape a sheet of parchment paper to your counter top and sprinkle very lightly with flour.

Turn dough out onto the parchment and roll to 1/8 inch thick.

Cut into circles and transfer to the baking sheet.

Place about 1/4 teaspoon of filling in the center of each circle—be careful not to over-fill.

Fold each circle into a triangle, sealing the edges well.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, until edges are golden.

Cool on a wire rack.

Advertisement

Hamantashen (Poppy Seed)

 

 

 

 

 

It’s almost Purim!  Time to celebrate the triumph of the Jews over Haman’s plot with some tasty cookies.  In case you’re not familiar with story of Purim, visit http://www.aish.com/h/pur/b/48970736.html.

Anyway…as I’ve mentioned, Mike and I are an interfaith Jewish-Catholic couple, so we have a lot to celebrate.  This was my first experience making hamantashen, and I must say I was thoroughly humbled by the process.  Folding circles of quick-to-tear dough into pinwheels/triangles is much, much more difficult than one may imagine.  Next time, I’ll try a different recipe, but if I were to make these again, I wouldn’t chill the dough for nearly as long so that it would remain as pliable as possible.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, cut into small pieces, softened
  • 2 egg yolks
  • Zest of 1 large orange
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 ¼ cups flour
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 10-ounce jar poppy seed filling

Preparation

Combine butter, egg yolks, orange zest, flour, and salt in a food processor.

Pulse until dough forms.

Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead very gently, just until the dough comes together.  Chill briefly, about 20 minutes, until dough is easy to handle.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Roll out dough to ¼ inch thickness and cut with a round, 2 ½ inch cookie cutter or drinking glass.  Gently press the circles between your palms to make them more pliable if necessary.

Place circles on your cookie sheet, and using the tip of your finger, lightly brush the edge of each circle with water.

Place about 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of each circle.

Fold dough to form a pinwheel/triangle shape; begin with the left side and fold inward, then fold the right side inward, leaving some of the filling exposed.  Fold up the bottom, tucking the right bottom edge under the right side of the triangle, and folding the left bottom edge over the left side of the triangle.

Bake for 15 minutes, until light golden brown.

Cool on a wire rack.