Hamantaschen Food

HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• Make the dough: Beat the butter, both sugars, the egg, milk, vanilla and maple extract (if using) with a mixer on medium-high speed. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and beat until fully incorporated.
• Divide the dough into thirds and wrap each portion tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Form the hamantaschen: Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 375˚ F. Roll out one piece of dough on a floured surface until 1/8 inch thick. Use the rim of a juice glass to cut out 3-inch circles. Repeat with the remaining dough.
• Spoon a teaspoon of the apricot preserves into the center of each circle of dough.
• Fold in the edges of the dough to form a triangle, pinching at the corners to keep the filling in but leaving the center filling slightly exposed.
• Bake the hamantaschen: Arrange the hamantaschen on 2 baking sheets (use nonstick pans or line the pans with parchment paper).
• Bake, rotating and switching the pans halfway through, until the hamantaschen are lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Let cool a few minutes on the baking sheets, then remove to a wire rack and let cool completely.

HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• In the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and sugar on medium speed until light in color and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Add orange zest, orange juice, vanilla extract, and 2 eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl when necessary
• Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add to butter mixture until just combined. Divide dough into thirds. Wrap tightly in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Remove one-third of the dough from the refrigerator at a time. On a liberally floured surface, roll dough to a 1/8-inch thickness. With a 3-inch fluted round cutter, cut out as many circles as possible, and place on a prepared baking pan. Chill until firm, about 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile make the poppy-seed filling: Grind poppy seeds in a food processor. Place seeds in a medium saucepan. Add milk and honey. Cook over a medium-low heat until thickened, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Add raisins and lemon zest. Remove from heat. Cool completely before using.
• Remove chilled circles from refrigerator. Place each filling into a medium pastry bag fitted with a coupler. Pipe 2 teaspoons of filling into the center of each circle. Whisk together remaining egg with 1 teaspoon of water. Brush edges with egg wash. Fold in sides to form a triangle. Pinch dough to enclose the filling.
• Bake the cookies in the center rack of the oven until golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets for 5 minutes; then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

EASY HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
• In a large bowl, beat the eggs and sugar until lightly and fluffy. Stir in the oil, vanilla and orange juice. Combine the flour and baking powder; stir into the batter to form a stiff dough. If dough is not stiff enough to roll out, stir in more flour. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough out to 1/4 inch in thickness. Cut into circles using a cookie cutter or the rim or a drinking glass. Place cookies 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. Spoon about 2 teaspoons of preserves into the center of each one. Pinch the edges to form three corners.
• Bake for 12 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool for 1 minute on the cookie sheet before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

APRICOT HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• Combine the confectioners' sugar, flour and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Process for 10-15 seconds to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 2 of the egg yolks and pulse a few times, until the mixture is crumbly and pale yellow. Add 1 tablespoon of the water and pulse just until the dough starts to clump together. If the mixture seems dry, add the remaining tablespoon of water and pulse again. Dump the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead a few times into a smooth ball. Divide in half and pat into two 6-inch discs; wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375°F and set racks in upper and lower thirds of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a small bowl, make an egg wash by mixing the remaining egg yolk with 1 teaspoon water. Set aside.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator and place on a lightly floured work surface. Working with one disc of dough at a time, roll to ⅛-inch thick, turning and dusting with more flour as necessary so it doesn't stick. Using a cookie cutter or glass, cut out 3-inch circles and place about ½-inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Re-roll and re-cut any excess dough. Brush the dough very lightly with the egg wash. Place a level teaspoon of apricot jam on the center of each cookie (do not overfill). Fold in the sides, slightly overlapping the filling, to form a triangle so that each side of the cookie has a corner that folds over and a corner that folds under -- this creates a pattern that looks pretty (but don't fuss too much over it). Pinch the corners together neatly so that they form a point. Slide the pans into the refrigerator for 20 minutes to chill.
• Bake for 12-15 minutes, turning the pans halfway through baking, until the cookies are lightly golden on top and just starting to brown in the corners. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The Dough can be Frozen for up to 3 Months: Shape the dough into 2 discs, wrap each securely in plastic wrap, and place them in a sealable bag. When ready to bake, remove the disks from the freezer, thaw the dough for 1 to 2 days in the fridge, and then proceed with recipe. To Freeze After Baking: Let the hamantaschen cool completely and store in an airtight container separating layers with parchment paper or aluminum foil. Before serving, remove the cookies from the container and let them come to room temperature.

HOW TO MAKE TRADITIONAL HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• Cream butter and eggs using a stand mixer. Add vanilla, sugar, and orange juice until incorporated. Mix dry ingredients and slowly add them, one cup at a time, to the mixer. Use a spatula to help gather dough if needed. Once all ingredients have mixed for about 3 minutes, separate the dough into 2 balls. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.
• Position racks in the lower thirds of the oven. Preheat to 350° F. Remove 1 ball of dough from the fridge. Lightly dust flour over a clean surface. Separate the dough ball into thirds. Roll one-third until about ⅛ inch thick, turning and flipping at 90 degrees every few rolls, to prevent dough from sticking and to keep the dough even.
• Use a juice glass to cut circles in the dough. Lift the excess dough off and flip the circles over. Add a blueberry-sized amount of filling to the center of a circle. If the dough has dried, run a wet finger or pastry brush with water around the perimeter. Then, fold one edge inwards, slightly covering the filling, fold the next edge slightly overlapping, and then the last, creating a triangle with overlapping sides. Press down to ensure the dough sticks together. Some prefer to pinch the dough upwards, which works too!
• Line uncooked hamantaschen on a baking sheet, not touching. Let cool in the fridge for 10 minutes. Bake 10-12 minutes in the lower part of the oven until the corners are golden brown. Move to a cooling rack, being careful not to spill the hot filling. The first batch offers an opportunity to adjust filling ratios-if filling spills out, use less. If cookies have a hollow center, try slightly more.
• Repeat with remaining dough and fillings. Unrolled dough will keep in the refrigerator up to 2 days, as long as it is tightly wrapped. Unbaked hamantashen can also be frozen on a baking sheet then bagged (perfect for baking in the future or shipping frozen to loved ones).

PURIM HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• Cream the butter and sugar together in the large bowl.
• Add the egg yolks and continue to mix well.
• Add the ice water.
• Gradually stir in flour until a ball of dough is formed.
• Place the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for several hours or overnight.
• When ready to continue, take dough out of refrigerator.
• Turn on the oven to 350 degrees.
• Grease the cookie sheet with the butter.
• Divide the dough in half.
• Wrap the extra half in the plastic and put back in the refrigerator.
• Roll out the dough on a clean, lightly floured surface to a 1/4" thickness.
• Cut it into 2" circles (use the top of a glass to"press out" the circles).
• Place 1 teaspoon of the jam in the center of each circle and fold into three-cornered cookies.
• Start by pressing two sides together, then fold the third side over and press the ends together.
• Place the Hamantaschen about an inch apart on the greased cookie sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until lightly browned along the edges.
• You don't have to limit yourself to jam, I have used chocolate, peanute butter, a combo of peanut butter and chocolate, date spread, etc.

HAMANTASCHEN (BEST EVER!)

Steps:

• For the filling, simply chop all the ingredients fine in your food processor and mix well.
• For the dough, cream sugar and eggs.
• Add oil and mix until it turns pale yellow and is no longer shiny.
• Mix in lemon and vanilla.
• In another bowl combine flour, baking soda, and baking powder.
• Slowly add dry ingredients to wet. When it becomes difficult to mix, add more flour and knead.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• To assemble cookies, roll out dough (in batches) to desired thickness (maybe a little thinner than 1/4") and cut into circles of desired size (can use cookie cutter, inverted glass, etc). Put a dollop of filling in the center of each cookie and fold up into a triangular shape, pinching the corners and leaving the center open so that the filling peeks out.
• Bake cookies for about 15 minutes until they are beginning to brown. I've always greased the cookie sheet very lightly with non-stick spray, but I don't know that you need to.

HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• Whisk together 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Set aside.
• In a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, beat 3/4 cup of unsalted butter and sugar on high speed for 2 minutes.
• Add the egg and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, then beat on high speed for 1 minute.
• Turn the mixer down to low and add the flour mixture. Mix until combined. The dough should be soft, but not too sticky to roll. Add a spoon of flour if necessary.
• Divide the dough into two parts. Place each part on a piece of parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Top each with another piece of parchment paper or silicone baking mat. Roll out the dough to about 1/4-inch thickness.
• Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, and up to 1 day.
• Using a 3-inch cookie cutter, cut the dough into circles and set on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
• When soft enough to form into the triangles, add 2 teaspoons of filling to the center of each circle.
• Fold in the sides, slightly overlapping the filling, to form a triangle. Each side of the cookie should have a corner that folds under and another that folds over. (See photos in post.) Pinch the corners together neatly so that they form a point.
• Refrigerate the cookies on the pans for 20 minutes. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 395F.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes until just barely getting golden.
• Cool on a wire rack completely before serving.

EASY PURIM HAMENTASHEN

Steps:

• To make fillings, cover prunes with water in a saucepan, bring to a boil over medium heat, cover, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook for 10 minutes. Drain the liquid, and mash the prunes with a potato masher. Stir in 1/4 cup of walnuts, 2 tablespoons of honey, and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice. In another saucepan, cover apricots with water, bring to a boil, cover, and simmer 10 minutes; drain liquid. Mash apricots with 1/4 cup walnuts, 2 tablespoons honey, and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Set both fillings aside.
• For the cookie, stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl until well mixed.
• In another bowl, place the butter, shortening, and sugar, and mash them together with a spoon until the mixture is completely combined and creamy. Beat the egg, milk, and vanilla extract into the butter mixture. Beat the flour mixture gradually into the butter mixture, while sifting the flour mixture in through a sifter. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface, and knead a few times, until smooth and easy to handle. If dough is too sticky, knead in additional flour 1 tablespoon at a time. Cut the dough into two portions, wrap each portion separately, and refrigerate at least 3 hours.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Roll a portion of dough out on a floured surface to 1/8-inch thick, and cut into 12 circles with a 3-inch round cutter. Place 1 heaping teaspoon of prune filling into the center of a dough circle, and pinch the dough together to form a triangle, with the center open to expose the filling. Repeat for the rest of the circles.
• Brush the cookies with beaten egg and sprinkle with sugar, if desired. Bake in preheated oven until the cookies are lightly browned, 18 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes before removing to finish cooling on rack.
• While the prune cookies are baking, repeat the process with the second refrigerated portion of dough, rolling and cutting as before, and filling each with 1 heaping teaspoon of apricot filling. Pinch the cookies into triangles, brush with egg and sprinkle with coarse sugar as before, and bake the apricot cookies in the preheated oven for 18 minutes. Cool as for prune cookies.

HAMENTASCHEN

Steps:

• To make the Filling: Place the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes or until soft and the liquid is absorbed. Add water, if needed. Let cool.
• To make the Dough: Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse. In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, egg, egg white, and orange zest. Add it to the processor and pulse to mix, being careful not to over mix. Divide into 2 disks and chill 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Roll out the dough on a floured work surface to 1/4-inch thick. Cut out 2 1/2 to 3-inch disks. (You can re-roll the scrapes to make more disks.) Place a disk of dough down and place 1 teaspoon of filling in the center. Pinch the disk in 3 places to form a triangular shape with the filling still showing in the center. They will look like 3 cornered hats. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets. Continue until all the disks are made.
• Bake for 12 to 14 minutes.

TRADITIONAL HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• Into a bowl sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl with an electric mixer beat shortening, sugar, and egg at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add zest and juice and beat until incorporated. Add flour mixture, stirring, until a smooth dough is formed. Gather dough into a ball and flatten into a disk. Chill dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, at least 3 hours and up to 2 days.
• Preheat oven to 375° F.
• Halve dough. On a lightly floured surface roll out half of dough (keeping other half wrapped and chilled) 1/4 inch thick. With a 3-inch cutter cut out as many rounds as possible. Transfer rounds with a metal spatula to a large baking sheet, arranging about 1/2 inch apart. Reroll scraps and cut out more rounds. Put 1 teaspoon filling in center of each round and fold up edges to form triangular cookies resembling a tricornered hat, pinching corners together and leaving filling exposed. (Pinch dough tightly enough so seams are no longer visible and sides are taut enough to prevent cookies from leaking filling as they bake.)
• Bake hamantaschen in middle of oven 20 minutes, or until pale golden. Cool hamantaschen on baking sheet 5 minutes and transfer to racks to cool completely. Make more hamantaschen with remaining dough and filling in same manner. Hamantaschen keep in an airtight container at room temperature 5 days.

STRAWBERRY HALVA HAMANTASCHEN

Steps:

• To make the dough, mix all the ingredients together with your hands to form a dough. Cut it in half and form into two discs. Wrap the discs and chill for about 1 hr.
• To make the halva filling, mix the tahini and honey in a small bowl with a pinch of sea salt. If it's very thick, add a little water - take care not to add too much or it will become too liquid.
• Roll out one of the pieces of dough on a lightly floured surface until it's about 2-3mm thick. It's important to keep it thin or the hamantaschen will be too chunky once folded. Cut out circles of the dough using a 6 or 7cm pastry cutter - the smaller the cutter, the more hamantaschen you will have.
• Smear about ½ tsp of the halva filling on each circle, and top with about ¼ tsp jam - you don't want any more than about a teaspoon of the two combined, or it will be awkward to fold and the filling will ooze out when baking.
• To assemble the hamantaschen, paint the outer edge of a circle very lightly with egg wash. Take the lower left edge of the circle (if it was a clock face, it would be from 5 to 8 o'clock) and fold it at an angle towards the centre to make a flap that covers the left third of the circle. Next, take the opposite side of the circle (7 to 3 o'clock) and fold it up towards the centre, slightly overlapping the left side flap to create a triangular tip at the bottom of the circle. You should be able to see the filling in the middle. Finally, fold the top part of the circle downwards to create a third flap and complete the triangle - a small triangle of filling should be visible in the centre. Gently press the points of the triangle together to make them really stick. Ideally, you want the edges to be over the next one on one side and under on the other to create a pinwheel effect. Place the hamantaschen on a baking tray lined with baking parchment and chill for 20-30 mins to firm up. Repeat with the remaining circles, then with the second disc of dough and the remaining filling.
• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Bake for about 20 mins until golden brown - check after 15 mins that they're not getting too dark. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.