This past weekend, I celebrated the grandaddy of all drinking holidays -- and one of my all-time favorite Jewish festivals -- Purim.
For those of you unfamiliar, Purim is the celebration of yet another time the Jewish people were nearly wiped out. We seem to be popular targets in the human dart game of history.
The basic story is this: a bad guy named Haman is advisor to the quite stupid and easily manipulated King of Persia, Ahashverosh. Haman wants to kill the Jews because he's a big meanie, but also because Mordechai the Jew refused to bow down to him. But unfortunately for Haman, the king's wife, Queen Esther, is Mordechai's niece -- and guess what -- secretly a Jew! Joke's on you, Haman. So instead of having the Jews killed, Haman gets done in himself. Now that's what I call poetic justice.
To celebrate the holiday, you're supposed to a) dress up like one of the characters in the Purim story (check out me as Esther below), b) eat Hamantashen, which are cookies shaped like Haman's triangular hat, and c) get so drunk you can't tell the difference between Haman and Mordechai. And no, that last requirement isn't made up. We Jews know how to party.
My hamantashen came out amazingly delicious, and I had a raucously good time with all my friends who came out to celebrate the holiday with me. Much thanks to all my guests, and to everyone who brought booze for the happy day. You contributed to a very noble cause.
If you're interested in making your own hamantashen (which I heartily recommend you do), check out my mom's recipe. These cookies come out soft and fluffy and have a consistency somewhere between a hard sugar cookie and a firm cake. They are, for lack of a better word, delicious. And incredibly easy to make, so get to it!
Hamantashen Recipe
Dough2/3 cup (1 ½ sticks) margarine or unsalted butter½ cup sugar1 egg, beaten3 tablespoons milk or water½ teaspoon vanilla2½ - 3 cups sifted all purpose flourFillingAssorted Solo Brand filling or pie fillings (raspberry, prune, apricot, poppy)Chocolate chipsCream margarine or butter with the sugar; add the milk or water and vanilla; sift the flow and mix it with the margarine mixture until a ball of dough is formed; divide the dough into two cylinders approximately 3” in diameter and refrigerate for at least one hour, preferably two hours or overnight. When dough has been chilled cut dough into 1/8” slices and, using a floured rolling pin, roll slices into flat circles. Put filling in center of the circles and fold into a triangle. Make sure to pinch the corners very tightly. When cookies are ready brush with beaten egg (to make egg-free skip this step) and bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 – 15 minutes or until golden. Enjoy!
1 comments:
Your hamantaschens look great! Frank and I made them last Monday since I was missing Purim this year and he had a friend's birthday to go to. Frank totally outjewed me (well..he IS a Jew and I'm not so that is to be expected) and folded his cookies so perfectly. Mine sort of fell apart in the oven, sadly. But next year they will be awesome! Oh, I used a very similar recipe to yours, expect I added some orange juice to the dough. Next year I might also use some orange or lemon zest to give the cookie a little bit more of an interesting flavour.
Post a Comment