Hamantashen for Purim!
I’m currently in the baking module of my culinary program and have definitely been inspired to get more experimental with my Kitchen Aid! I am always adventurous with my recipes, but this one was an overhaul of a real classic.
As far back as I can remember I have been making hamantashen for Purim. When I was a child, my mother would make the dough and roll it out, and let me and my sisters cut out the circles and fold them into delectable triangles. Waiting until our three cornered delights were ready to eat was one of the hardest things we did all year. We would smell the cinnamon and sugar topping (the secret ingredient that makes them smell almost as good as they taste) and our impatience would get the best of us. We would bite into the cookies before they were cool, and burn our tongues on the hot sugary jelly inside.One of the focuses on Purim is drinking (responsibly), so I decided to create an “adult” hamantashen for the kid inside us all. I brainstormed some fun cocktails that I dreamed I could roll into hamantashen. I hope you enjoy my take on the classic hamantashen and enjoy these as much as my band of taste testers and I did!
Note: These are kid friendly since all the alcohol is cooked or boiled out. If you want no alcohol in your hamantashen, each recipe is great with the liquor left out. What you do with the extra liquor is up to you 🙂
Happy Purim!
Mojito Hamantashen
Make a 2 ½ Dozen
Dough
2 Cups Flour
¾ tsp. Baking Powder
1/8 tsp. Salt
½ Cup Earth Balance or Butter, softened
2/3 Cup Sugar
1 Egg
1 Egg Yolk (reserve the egg white for assembling the cookie)
1 tsp. Vanilla
1-1 1/2 tsp. Peppermint Oil
1 TBS. Fresh Mint Leaves, minced
Raw Sugar (optional)
Lime-Rum Curd Filling
1 Cup Sugar
¼ Cup Earth Balance or Butter
1/8 Cup Corn Starch
¾ Cup Fresh Lime Juice
1 TBS. Lime Zest
2 Eggs, Beaten
2 TBS. Rum
Dough: Stir together flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat butter until creamy. Beat in sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg, egg yolk, vanilla, peppermint oil and mint leaves. Beat in flour mixture until combined. Divide dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate several hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 375 and line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Roll out refrigerated dough on a lightly floured surface, about 1/8 inch thick. Cut rounds, until dough is finished. Fill the rounds with the lime-rum curd filling and with your pinky, dip in egg white and lightly wet the edges around the hamantashen. Make the hamantashen triangle shape by folding the bottom to make two corners and folding the top to make the 3rd (requires both hands). Brush the outer part of the hamantashen with egg white and sprinkle on the raw sugar. Bake for about 12 minutes until lightly browned.
Filling: Place the sugar, earth balance, corn starch, lime juice, lime zest and rum in a sauce pan. Heat the mixture till the butter melts. Pour some of the lime mixture into the eggs and stir together to temper the eggs. Pour the egg mixture into the pan and whisk constantly till mixture starts to boil and thicken. Whisk for about a minute, take off heat and strain into a bowl (this will separate any egg that may have curdled from the curd itself). Refrigerate the curd till ready to use.
*When baked, the filling soaks into the cookie and the curd deflates. They look beautiful and you still get that flavor, but if you wish to fill the cookie all the way up with curd after baking, make a double batch of the filling and fill in all the spots after the cookies are baked and cool.
Tequila Sunrise Hamantashen
Makes 2 ½ Dozen
Dough
2 Cups Flour
¾ tsp. Baking Powder
1/8 tsp. Salt
½ Cup Earth Balance or Butter, softened
2/3 Cup Sugar
1 Egg
1 Egg Yolk (reserve the egg white for assembling the cookie)
1 tsp. Vanilla
2 tsp. Orange Zest
Cherry-Tequila Jam Filling
1 17.5 oz. Jar of Cherry Preserves (I love Trader Joes brand because whole cherries make up most of the jelly)
2 TBS. Tequila
Dough: Stir together flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat butter until creamy. Beat in sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg, egg yolk, vanilla, and orange zest. Beat in flour mixture until combined. Divide dough in half and wrap each half in plastic wrap and refrigerate several hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 375 and line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Roll out refrigerated dough on a lightly floured surface, about 1/8 inch thick. Cut rounds, until dough is finished. Fill the rounds with the cherry-tequila jam filling and with your pinky, dip in egg white and lightly wet the edges around the hamantashen. Make the hamantashen triangle shape by folding the bottom to make two corners and folding the top to make the 3rd (requires both hands). Bake for about 12 minutes until lightly browned.
Filling: Mix the cherry preserves with the Tequila. Add 1 more tbs. of tequila if you want the filling to be stronger.
Frangelico (Hazelnut Liquor) Hamantashen
Makes 2 1/2 Dozen
Dough
1 1/3 Cup Flour
1/3 Cup Cocoa
½ tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Baking Powder
¼ Cup Earth Balance or Butter, softened
¾ Cup Sugar
1 tsp. Almond Extract
1 Egg
3 TBS. Coconut Cream (the cream on top separates from the water on the bottom)
Chocolate-Frangelico Ganache Filling
8 Oz. Dark Chocolate, chopped ( I like Trader Joes brand)
8 Oz. Coconut Cream
Dash of Salt
3 TBS. Frangelico Liquor
½ Cup Hazelnuts, toasted and chopped
½ Cup Whole Hazelnuts
Dough: Stir together flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat butter until creamy. Beat in sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg and almond extract. Beat in flour mixture until combined. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate several hours or overnight.
Preheat oven to 375 and line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper. Roll out refrigerated dough on a lightly floured surface, about 1/8 inch thick. Cut rounds, until dough is finished. Fill the rounds with the chocolate-frangelico ganache filling and with your pinky, dip in egg white and lightly wet the edges around the hamantashen. Make the hamantashen triangle shape by folding the bottom to make two corners and folding the top to make the 3rd (requires both hands). Put a hazelnut on top of each hamantashen and bake for about 12 minutes until lightly browned.
Filling: Heat all of the ingredients together (except the hazelnuts) in a small saucepan till melted. Take off stove and add the chopped hazelnuts.
