With Purim coming up, Jewish cooks from all over are scrambling to be creative in their Purim treats. There have been numerous twists on Hamantashen posted on other blogs. I myself created two great twists on the traditional Hamantash for Ami Magazine, as well as adorable Hamantashen cake pops for Joy of Kosher. But…let’s not completely forget the original!
If you have always been one of those people who admire hamantashen, but can’t get your homemade version to look right, you’re in luck. The Humble Hamantashen Fairy (that would be me) is here to provide you with the tips and tricks you need to make your hamantashen look like they came from a bakery. Scroll down for the recipe, then check out my tips and step by step pictures on my guest post on Cook Kosher.
Hamantashen
Adapted from The Heimishe Kitchen
Ingredients:
4 1/2 cups flour
pinch salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup sugar
3 egg yolks, whites reserved for topping
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 sticks (1 cup) butter or margarine
1/2 cup orange juice
Filling: your choice of jams, or Nutella
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, stir together the flour, salt, baking powder and sugar. Add the egg yolks, vanilla, margarine and orange juice. Mix until it forms a smooth dough.
On a well-floured surface, roll the dough out. Make sure it isn’t too thin (details on my guest post). Using a circle cookie cutter, or the rim of a glass (about 2 inches in diameter) cut circles out of the dough. Place about 3/4 teaspoon of your choice of filling in the center of each circle. Do not overfill.
Bring two arcs of circle up to meet in the center. Raise the third side of the circle to meet the first two arcs. Pinch together all of the seams where the dough meets. Using your finger, rub a bit of egg white into the seam.
Place the shaped hamantashen on a parchment lined cookie sheet, and bake at 350 for 15-18 minutes.
Don’t forget to read through my tips before baking these to ensure they come out perfect!
Enjoy!
Thanks for coming by! Stay tuned for some more adorable purim treats! -Miriam
kitchenbelleicious says
oh that is just incredible. It looks so fresh and delicious.I love the design. You my friend are amazing
overtimecook says
Oh wow, thank you! What a compliment!
Erin says
I’ve never had these before but they are very pretty!
overtimecook says
I guess these are one of those traditional foods that seeped their way into New York culture but haven’t made it all over the country yet. 🙂
Shira Zwebner says
These look delicious! Do they result in soft cookies or are they hard? I’m looking for a hamentaschen recipe with a soft cookie.
overtimecook says
They are quite soft- in fact, many of my tasters were quite surprised when tasting them, because most Hamantashen are hard.
Irene Saiger says
They look perfect! I always use my mother-in-law’s recipe but I may try this one.
Thanks!
Irene
Vanilla Bean Baker says
I am going to try to make these sometime. I love that they are filled with different ingredients and I love their shape. Thank you for sharing your recipe, I’m glad that it results in a soft cookie.
overtimecook says
Thank you Paula! If you’ve never tried Hamantashen you really need to- they’re so delicious!
NerdyBaker says
These look yummy, I will have to try them!
esti w. says
how thin do you roll out the dough? 1/4 inch?
overtimecook says
Hi Esti – that’s about right.
Hindy says
How in advance can I make the dough? I’d like to prepare it a few hrs before so my daughter can shape them is that ok?
Yael says
I just made these. The dough was wonderful to work with. However, they did not hold their shape as well as I would have liked. Taste great though
Jennifer says
Can you use oil instead of margarine? Like avocado or coconut? Thanks!
overtimecook says
I haven’t tried it with oil, so I can’t say for sure.
miriam says
Hi,
how long does it take to do this recipe and how many pieces come out?
thank you
D says
The dough is very dry.what did I do wrong?
Esther says
Do these freeze well?
overtimecook says
Yes!
Moaning Myrtle says
Perfect! loved these!
PetiteM says
I couldn’t access your tips for making the Hamantashen