These Jewish chocolate hamantaschen cookies are traditional shortbread cookies that are filled with chocolate, jam, poppyseed, and much more.
These cookies are buttery and melt-in-your-mouth delicious and can be filled with your favorite spread! I have got to warn you though, you won't be able to stop at one.
The texture is both soft and slightly crisp, providing a delightful contrast with the sweet and flavorful fillings such as poppy seed, fruit preserves, or chocolate.
The flavor profile of Hamantaschen cookies is rich and indulgent, with a perfect balance of sweetness from the filling and buttery notes from the dough.
Perfect for celebrating the festive occasion of Purim or simply satisfying your sweet tooth, these cookies are sure to satisfy your sweet tooth.
For more Jewish and Israeli recipes, check out our challah buns, date roll cookies, moist honey cake, and our chocolate babka.
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Why this recipe works
- Versatile- these cookies can be filled with your favorite spread or filling like Nutella, dulce de leche, peanut butter, jam, poppy seed filling, etc!
- Simple- they are made with super simple ingredients that you may have in your kitchen!
- Better than store bought- these cookies have a perfect buttery flavor and are so much better than store bought! The texture, flavor, and everything about this is just better!
- Texture- these cookies are made with a buttery shortbread like dough that melts in your mouth with a delicious filling of your choice, that melts in every bite.
- Perfect for the holidays- they are perfect for Purim or any other day! The flavor is a classic, shortbread cookie with your favorite spread. My favorite is chocolate!
What is Hamantaschen?
Hamantaschen, Hamentashen, or Haman's ears, are a traditional Jewish triangle-filled shortbread cookie served in the Jewish holiday Purim. They are usually filled with chocolate spread, poppyseed filling, jam, etc.
They are shaped as a triangle that resembles the ear of the Purim's story villain, Haman.
Ingredients
Before you start to make this hamentaschen recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
Butter- use unsalted butter for this recipe. Only butter will work for this recipe, no margarine, and no coconut oil. Margarine has a weird taste and can ruin the flavor of this dessert.
Flour– we used all-purpose flour for this recipe. cake flour will work great as well.
Egg yolks- you will need two egg yolks for this recipe. Ensure that they are at room temperature so they will incorporate into the dough perfectly.
Powder sugar- you will need powdered sugar for this recipe. you don’t have to buy powdered sugar, you can simply make it at home by blending granulated sugar in a blender or food processor.
Vanilla extract- adds extra flavor. You can use regular vanilla extract or vanilla bean extract.
Kosher salt- you will need about ½ teaspoon of kosher salt for this recipe.
Nutella- you will need 15 teaspoon of Nutella for this recipe. We like using Nutella for this recipe, but if you don’t like Nutella or are allergic to one of the ingredients, you can use any kind of chocolate hazelnut spread.
Instructions
In a medium mixing bowl, add the softened butter, powdered sugar, kosher salt, and vanilla extract. Mix with an electric hand mixer until well combined and creamy.
Add the egg yolks and mix until well combined. Scrape down the sides and make sure that you have a smooth mixture.
Add the flour and mix until a dough forms. The dough will seem crumbly at first but then it will turn into a nice dough.
Shape the dough into a rectangular and cover it with plastic wrap (so it will be easier to roll). Place in the fridge to firm up for at least an hour.
Preheat the oven to 180c (350f) and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Remove the dough from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. Unwrap the dough from the plastic wrap and place the dough between two parchment papers and roll it to ¼ inch thick.
Use a 2 ½-inch cookie cutter and cut as many cookies as you can. Form a dough ball from the remaining dough and repeat until you finish the dough. You should have 30 circles of dough.
Fill each circle of dough with ½ teaspoon of the filling of your choice, I used Nutella for this.
Use egg white and brush the edges of the dough to ensure the edges stick. Form a triangle by pinching three corners together. Pinch the dough well to ensure it will keep its shape in the oven.
Bake them in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 15-17 minutes. The cookies should be lightly golden but still pale so they will stay soft.
Let the cookies cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes and sprinkle them with powdered sugar and serve!
Expert Tips
- Do not overfill these. In order for these cookies to turn out perfectly and have a perfect triangle shape, you will need to add just enough filling so they won't burst in the oven.
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like butter. This step ensures that your mixture mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly. you don’t want to place cold batter into the oven.
- For a shiny finish, brush each cookie with an egg wash made from beaten egg and water before baking them in a preheated oven until golden brown.
- Don’t overmix the dough, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dry cookies.
- Make sure that your butter is at room temperature. An hour or two before making these cookies, take the butter out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. The butter should be soft to the touch. If your butter is too cold, it will be harder to mix and there will be lumps of butter in the dough.
- Experiment with different fillings like chocolate spread, peanut butter, jam, or nutella for a modern twist on this classic recipe.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with a back of a knife.
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
Faq's
If you like your cookies less crunchy, bake them for 12-14 minutes. If you like them extra crispy, bake them for 17-18 minutes until the edges of the cookies become golden brown!
Yes! You can make the cookie dough and store it in the fridge for up to 3 days. When you are ready to bake, follow the instructions as written.
We used regular unsalted butter for this recipe. If you want to use salted butter in this recipe, simply skip the salt and make the recipe as written.
The dough is made from flour, sugar, butter, eggs, and a touch of vanilla extract. They are filled with sweet fillings like fruit preserves, poppy seeds, or chocolate.
Popular hamantaschen flavors vary, but some traditional favorites include apricot jam, raspberry jam, poppy seed filling, and chocolate spread.
Storing
Store these cookies at room temperature for up to 5 days. Store these in an airtight container so they won't dry out.
Freezing
Freezing these cookies is very easy. After they are cooled completely, cover them with a plastic wrap tightly (a few layers) transfer them into an airtight freezer-friendly container, and freeze them for up to 2 months.
Thaw in the fridge overnight or at room temperature for about an hour.
Another way to freeze these is freezing the dough. Wrap the dough with plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 3 months. When you are ready to make these cookies, place the dough in the fridge for a few hours to allow it to thaw.
Substitutions
Dairy-free - If you are dairy-free, replace the butter with vegan butter or plant-based butter.
Gluten-free - if you want to make this recipe gluten-free, simply replace the flour with gluten-free flour. I never tried it with this recipe, but it should work just fine.
Variations
Spread- you can swap the Nutella or chocolate spread with your favorite spread! Like jam, lemon curd, chocolate ganache, peanut butter, biscoff cookie butter.
Nuts- roast, peel, and finely chop your favorite nuts like hazelnuts, walnuts, or pecans, and top the filling with nuts of added crunch and delicious nutty flavor.
Chocolate dipped- after you baked and cooled these cookies, melt your favorite chocolate like dark chocolate, white chocolate, or milk chocolate, and dip the Hamantaschen in the melted chocolate!
Extract- swap the vanilla extract with your favorite extracts like almond extract, peppermint extract, or lemon extract!
Citrus- add ½ teaspoon of either lemon or orange zest to the dough for a delicious zesty flavor.
Chocolate dough- make a chocolate dough by swapping ⅓ cup of the flour with sifted cocoa powder.
Equipment
- Baking sheet and rack set (our fave)
- Electric hand mixer
- Rubber spatula
- French rolling pin
- Round cookie cutter
More cookie recipes
Triple chocolate cookies- These triple chocolate cookies are made with cocoa powder, chocolate chips, and chocolate chunks! These are the ultimate cookies for real chocolate lovers.
Nutella cookies- These Nutella cookies are chocolate cookies that are made with Nutella inside the cookie dough and topped with dollops of melted Nutella.
Homemade Milano cookies- These Milano cookies are made with buttery and tender vanilla cookies and filled with a silky smooth chocolate ganache.
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📖 Recipe
Jewish Hamantaschen Cookies (Purim Cookies)
Ingredients
- 1 cup Butter softened
- ¾ cup Powder sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 Egg
- 1 Egg yolk
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 2 ¾ cups Flour
- 15 teaspoon Nutella
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the softened butter, powdered sugar, kosher salt, and vanilla extract. Mix with an electric hand mixer until well combined and creamy.
- Add the egg, and egg yolk and mix until well combined. Scrape down the sides and make sure that you have a smooth mixture.
- Add the flour and mix until a dough forms. The dough will seem crumbly at first but then it will turn into a nice dough.
- Shape the dough into a rectangular and cover it with plastic wrap (so it will be easier to roll). Place in the fridge to firm up for at least an hour.
- Preheat the oven to 180c (350f) and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and let it sit at room temperature for 5 minutes. Unwrap the dough from the plastic wrap and place the dough between two parchment papers and roll it to ¼ inch thick.
- Use a 2 ½-inch cookie cutter and cut as many cookies as you can. Form a dough ball from the remaining dough and repeat until you finish the dough. You should have 30 circles of dough.
- Fill each circle of dough with ½ teaspoon of the filling of your choice, I used Nutella for this.
- Use egg white and brush the edges of the dough to ensure the edges stick. Form a triangle by pinching three corners together. Pinch the dough well to ensure it will keep its shape in the oven.
- Bake them in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 15-17 minutes. The cookies should be lightly golden but still pale so they will stay soft.
- Let the cookies cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes and sprinkle them with powdered sugar and serve!
Notes
- Do not overfill these. In order for these cookies to turn out perfectly and have a perfect triangle shape, you will need to add just enough filling so they won't burst in the oven.
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like butter. This step ensures that your mixture mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly. you don’t want to place cold batter into the oven.
- For a shiny finish, brush each cookie with an egg wash made from beaten egg and water before baking them in a preheated oven until golden brown.
- Don’t overmix the dough, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dry cookies.
- Make sure that your butter is at room temperature. An hour or two before making these cookies, take the butter out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. The butter should be soft to the touch. If your butter is too cold, it will be harder to mix and there will be lumps of butter in the dough.
- Experiment with different fillings like chocolate spread, peanut butter, jam, or Nutella for a modern twist on this classic recipe.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with the back of a knife.
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
Hadassa says
My dad loves these cookies, he has me make them all the time