I know I know, the headline is silly. But here's something you may not know (unless you speak Yiddish or German), the word hamantaschen means 'poppy seed pockets' montashn in Yiddish or mohntaschen in German. Mon is poppy seed and taschen means pockets. They are also called oznai Haman or Haman's ears in Hebrew. It has become a modern folklore that Haman wore a three-cornered hat and thus we are eating his hat.
Whoa whoa, slow down now. Who is this Haman character? Well it's all related to my favorite holiday, Purim. I could be partial because I was born on Purim but I just love it! Traditionally we eat these little pockets filled with many delicious flavors but the two traditional flavors are poppy seed (mon) and plum (I refuse to call it prune because they get a bad rap). Plum happens to be my favorite but you can make them with any filling. I prefer the Solo fillings which are Kosher dairy. They are the best brand, in my opinion, with great flavors and fillings of the right consistency. You can find them in just about any grocery store.
If you want to learn more about the holiday of Purim, I suggest going here.
Now, I am about to share something very special with you... my special Hamantaschen recipe. This was given to me by a dear friend and truly is the best dough I have ever found for Hamantaschen. Please use and enjoy and please credit us for this recipe.
Hamantaschen
1 1/4 cups of sugar
4 eggs
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup oil
Mix these together. Then add:
5 cups of flour (I mix whole wheat and white. You may need more oil because the whole wheat sucks it up.)
1 Tablespoon baking powder (only have baking soda? That's okay, click here for my magical recipe to make baking POWDER from baking SODA... and NO they are NOT interchangeable.)
1/2 teaspoon of salt
You will also need one 10-12oz jar of fruit filling per recipe. (Again, I like Solo but Baker's also works. Thick jams can work too.)
Mix the dough until it clings together and is smooth - when it is too stiff to mix with a spoon or mixer, mix the dough with your hands.
Roll the dough out on a floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick.
Cut out circles (I use a glass) and put the excess dough back in the bowl to be re-rolled.
Put approx 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of filling in the middle of the circle. It depends on the size of your circle.
Fold the dough up into a triangle shape and pinch closed. Leave an opening at the top for the filling to show through.
Place cookies on an UNGREASED cookie sheet approx 1/2 inch apart.
Re-roll the dough until all is used.
Bake at 350 degrees for 19-21 minutes or until light brown (WATCH THEM! You don't want black bottoms on your cookies!)
Place on cooling rack and store in airtight containers.
This recipe should make 40-44 cookies.
A special shout out to the World's Greatest Hamantaschen Maker who taught me everything I know and shared this recipe with me. Thanks Mommy Schlammy! :)