Community Corner

Hamantaschen Recipe for Purim

Chef Jerzy Gonzalez demonstrates a traditional cookie recipe in advance of the Jewish holiday of Purim. It's simple, delicious and a great activity to do with children.

Hamantaschen, the traditional, fruit-filled cookie of the Jewish holiday, Purim, is as celebrated a symbol of Kosher baking as challah or macaroons. Pastry chef Jerzy Gonzalez shared her recipe and its symbolic origins with Patch.

In different versions of the Old Testament story of Purim, the three-sided pastries are meant to resemble either the hat or ears of Haman, a 5th-century political figure who plotted to exterminate Jewish people living in ancient Persia. The fruit filling may represent Haman’s pockets, reputedly loaded down with riches. Eating hamantaschen on this holiday is a ritual that expresses victory over those who would destroy you, Gonzalez said.

“Some say that by eating this cookie you gain the power of your enemies,” she said. “The only way your enemy can hurt you this way is by raising your cholesterol.”

Find out what's happening in Haddonfield-Haddon Townshipwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Cultural identification with food is important to Gonzalez, who actually specializes in cake design.

“I feel like if you want to work with food, you have to know everything about it," she said. "It’s good to have multiple learning experiences.”

Find out what's happening in Haddonfield-Haddon Townshipwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

In addition to coming with a ready-made narrative, hamantaschen are also an easy, relatively simple recipe that parents can make with children. Gonzalez demonstrated the process in her Woodbury kitchen. Her recipe appears below.

Hamantaschen

Ingredients:

  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • ¾ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
  • ½ cup orange juice
  • 5 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 cup strawberry preserves (or any flavor you like)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.

2. In a large bowl, beat eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in oil, vanilla, and orange juice.

3. Combine flour and baking powder, and stir into the batter to form a stiff dough. If dough is not stiff enough to roll, stir in more flour. Allow dough to chill overnight (or, at minimum, 30 minutes) in the refrigerator.

4. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough out to quarter-inch thickness. Cut into circles using a cookie cutter or the rim of a drinking glass.

5. Place cookies two inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. Spoon about two teaspoons of preserves into the center of each one. Pinch the edges of each cookie to form three corners.

6. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool for one minute on the cookie sheet before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

Gonzalez notes: “Since I love chocolate, I like to drizzle chocolate over [the cookies] when done, and [add] some powdered sugar.”


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here