Bubbie-Approved Hamantaschen (Jewish Triangle Cookies)

You ever think about the saying "you are what you eat" and worry you might turn into a triangle? Because if you're chowing down on hamantaschen, it's a real risk. This Jewish pastry, traditionally baked for the holiday of Purim, takes the form of a tri-cornered hat. And let me tell you, this is one hat you won’t mind digesting.

Now, here's where it gets fun. Making hamantaschen at home is like an episode of a baking show. The dough is easy enough to whip up but then, you've got to roll it out, cut it into circles, and then the tricky part - filling and folding them into triangles. The best part? You can choose whatever filling your heart desires, from traditional poppy seed to prune to apricot, or even chocolate! It’s your rodeo, cowboy.

One more thing before I go, here's a pro tip for you. When you're making hamantaschen, make sure to seal those edges tight, unless you want a batch of blob-taschen instead. It’s like a sweet, pastry version of Russian roulette. You never quite know what you’re going to end up with, but trust me, it’s worth every bite. Until next time, keep that oven preheated, and those triangles tasty.

This is my grandma’s recipe from 1967. Grandma Charlotte used to make these triangular jelly filled dank cakes from time to time for the Jewish holiday called Purim. As a self-diagnosed “bad jew,” I really don’t know much about Purim as a holiday other than the fact that cookies called Hamantaschen are eaten. The Hamantachen are triangular stuffed cookies that are mean’t to resemble a man named Haman’s pointy hat. I guess Haman was a bad dude and what do we do to bad dudes, you ask? We eat their hats, I guess? Anyways, these cookies come around once a year in the Spring and I always make sure to eat at least one. SHOUTOUT to my Grandma Charlotte (RIP). Let’s make some of Grandma’s cookies. Bake on! 🤘🏼 Adam

Yield: 24 Hamantaschen

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Charlotte's Hamantaschen

Ingredients

Fruit Filling

• 1 pound Strawberries
• 1.5 cups Sugar
• 1/2 cup Water
• 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice

Dough

• 1 cup Sugar
• 4 Eggs
• 3/4 cup Neutral Oil
• 5 cups All-purpose Flour
• 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt
• 2 tsp Baking Powder

Instructions

Fruit Filling

1. Remove the green tops from the strawberries, cut in half and rinse under cold running water.
2. Add the cleaned strawberries and sugar to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Add the lemon juice and continue simmering for 10-15 minutes until the berries break down completely.

Dough

1. Preheat the oven to 375F.
2. In a large bowl beat the eggs until broken up then stream in the sugar. Pour in the oil and mix again.
3. Sift the flour, salt and baking powder then add it to the egg oil mixture. Work the dough together until it’s smooth and shiny then roll out the dough to 1/3 of an inch thick.
4. Use a 3 to 4 inch ring mold to cut as many circles as possible out of the dough.
5. Spoon a tablespoon or two of filling into the middle of the cookie, then fold three sides to form a triangle. Arrange the cookies on a parchment-lined tray and bake for 12 -15 minutes.
6. Remove the cookies from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before eating.

Adam's Notes

• Use any filling you want. Blueberry, cherry, chocolate and poppy are all great options.
• If you want to get technical with the Strawberry filling, bring the mixture to 220F. This is the temp you need to hit for the jam to “gel.” Also, of course, make sure the berries are broken down.