As someone who LOVES Purim and can’t wait for this holiday to come every single year, I really love hamantaschen cookies as well. On the days before the holiday I bakie many kinds of hamantaschen cookies to give my friends and family on the Mishloach Manot.
These hamantaschen cookies are made of almond short crust pastry that is scented with some orange zest, and filled with chocolate and nuts filling. They are buttery and has a beautiful malt-in-your-mouth texture that is simply addictive. If you like hamantaschen you’re gonna love these.
Photo: Natalie Levin
Almond Hamantaschen Cookies Filled with Chocolate
For the almond orange short crust pastry:
- 100 grams (1 stick) cold butter, cut into cubes
- 50 grams (5 tbsp.) sugar powder
- 140 grams (1 cup) all-purpose flour
- 35 grams (1/3 cup) almond meal
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- Zest of ½ orange
- 1 egg yolk
- 1-2 tbsp. orange juice ((gradually added, as needed))
For the chocolate filling:
- 150 grams dark chocolate
- 75 grams (3/4 stick) butter
- 50 grams (1/2 cup) ground nuts
For serving:
- Sugar powder
- Almond orange short crust pastry: in a food processor with a steel blade, mix butter, powdered sugar, flour, almond meal, salt, vanilla extract and orange zest until crumbly mixture is formed.
- Add the yolk and 1 tablespoon of orange juice and continue to blend until dough begins to form. If the dough does not combine, add the second tablespoon of the juice.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface, and form a disc shape with your hands. Wrap in plastic wrap and cool in the refrigerator for about an hour before rolling.
- Chocolate filling: melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave or oven double-boiler. Mix until everything melts and the mixture is uniform.
- Add ground nuts and mix until combined.
- Cool completely at room temperature before use. The mixture should be in a texture that is suitable for spreading after cooling.
- On a floured work surface roll out the dough to about 3-4 mm thick and cut out 5-6 cm circles.
- In each circle, place about ½ tsp of the chocolate filling and close in a shape of hamantaschen cookie.
- Place in intervals on a baking pan lined with baking paper, and cool the hamantaschen cookies in the freezer for about half an hour before baking.
- Preheat the oven to 175c degrees.
- Bake the hamantaschen for 10-14 minutes or until they are golden and completely set.
- Cool completely, sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.
- You can fill the hamantaschen cookies with any other filling you like.
- You can keep the frozen hamantaschen (before baking) for about a week in the freezer.
- It is important not to fill the hamantaschen cookies too much, so that the filling won’t burst out while baking.
- You can omit the orange zest from the dough if you’d like.
- Keep the hamantaschen cookies in a sealed jar at room temperature for 5-6 days.
Photo: Natalie Levin