These treats have dual meaning – when we are kids they say the shape represents the villain’s hat in the Story of Esther. As we grow up, the truth comes out – fertility cookies! Spring cookies in the shape of a uterus! Hmmm. I somehow don’t mind munching them down…

  • 10 ounces butter, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon Triple Sec, Grand Marnier or orange juice
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 2 1/2 – 3 cups all purpose flour
  • fillings – jam, lemon curd, nutella, peanut butter, cheesecake batter, poppy seed spread

Dough Prep:

  1. In a stand mixer or with an electric hand mixer, cream the butter, sugar and salt until light and fluffy.
  2. Add the egg, vanilla and Triple Sec and mix until fully blended.
  3. Add the baking powder and 2 1/2 cups of the flour. Mix well. If the dough is super wet, add a little more flour and mix in.
  4. Put a large piece of plastic wrap on the counter and dump the dough out onto it. Gently knead the dough into a ball and then flatten out into a disk. The flatter you get it now, the quicker it will chill and the easier it will be to roll out. Wrap the plastic over the dough and pop it into the refrigerator to chill, 2 to 24 hours, depending on how fast you want your cookies!

Make the Hamentashen:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375* and get out a few cookie sheets. Also grab the filling of your choice (or a few kinds!), a biscuit cutter and a rolling pin.
  2. Lightly flour the counter and roll the cookie dough out to about 1/8 of an inch. I like a sturdy cookie. If you want something more delicate, roll away!
  3. Use a biscuit cutter – or other 3″ round device to cut out the cookies. With re-rolling the scraps I get 30 Hamentashen. Put 1/2 to 1 teaspoon of filling in the center of each round. Fold the edges together to form a triangle. Seal well by pressing with your fingers – you want to make a vertical seam. Some people find that wetting the edges with water helps. If you are a patient person (I am not!) chill the cookies for 30 minutes before baking.
  4. Bake the cookies at 375* for 12-15 minutes until very lightly golden on the bottom. Move to a wire rack to cool completely before eating. These go best with a group of rowdy folks who are willing to debate the true meaning of a triangular cookie!