The Road to the Good Life: Recipe: Dairy-Free, Refined Sugar-Free Hamantaschen

Tuesday afternoon I made up a batch of Hamantaschen dough and put it in the fridge to chill over night. Yesterday morning I realized my flour to liquid mixture was off and feared I was on the path to something went horribly wrong (SWHW) rather than to tasty sweet and savory Purim treats. Luckily, all ended well.

So here's my tasty (totally confirmed by cubes without any bias) dairy-free, refined-sugar free Hamantaschen recipe. I started with the Basic Hamantaschen Dough (pareve) recipe from Orthodox Union and went from there.

First, a couple of things about the unmodified recipe I started with. Skip this paragraph if you just want to know what I did. Depending on where you live, sea level or altitude and how moist your flour is or isn't, the ratio of liquids to dry ingredients is off. Based on how dry my flour was I should have stopped adding somewhere between three and a half to four and a quarter cups. Dough when mixed correctly and ready for shaping should will look mealy (pulverized crackers) or have pea-size pieces. If you keep adding flour it isn't going to bind, you don't have enough liquid, and unlike crust for pies you're not adding liquid to the fat and flour mixture, you're adding the flour to your fat and liquid. Increasing the oil gradually might work. I separated the pea-sized pieces from the loose flour and went from there. I had almost a cup of dough/flour that I didn't use. Luckily it didn't affect the dough.

Ingredients

4 eggs, slightly beaten
3/4 cup organic cold pressed canola oil
3/4 cup granulated maple syrup crystals
Grated rind of 1 orange
4 to 5 cups, unbromated, unbleached white flour sifted
Filling of choice

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, use an immersion blender (set to low) to combine the eggs, oil, maple syrup crystals, and orange rind.
When mixture is fluffy and thick, gradually fold in flour.
Stop adding flour when texture of dough looks mealy or has pea-size pieces. Separate into three portions and refrigerate for at least one and a half hours or over night until firm.
If your baking rack is not in the center of the oven, reposition it, and then, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Prepare the Hamentashen in batches to avoid the dough heating up and making it difficult to work with. It's easier to fold when slightly chilled.
Roll out the dough onto a marble surface or floured board to 1/8 inch thickness (thicker dough will be harder to fold).
Using a 2 and a half inch or 3 inch diameter biscuit cutter cut circles and place onto a foil sheet on top of a cookie sheet.
Spoon a teaspoon of filling into the center of each circle. NOTE: If you're using jam or fruit spread for your filling, make sure it's room temperature. I found it was less likely to liquefy when baking.
Form a triangle, by folding the edges of the dough almost to the center. Overlap your folds, letting some filling show in the center.
Pinch the corners together tightly. This keeps the jam from running out onto the cookie sheet.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown.

With a 2 and a half inch diameter biscuit cutter and dough rolled out to 1/8 of an inch thickness, this recipe makes three dozen Hamantaschen.

What's your favorite filling?

I made my Hamantaschen with three fillings: two fruit spreads and one olive, caper, and tomato tapenade. The sweetness and slight hint of orange in the dough complements the olive nicely. Next year, I'll try my hand at making fillings from scratch, but if you're crunched for time, the fruit spread and tapenade is a good alternative.

Bon Appetit!

Eden!

Credits: All layouts designed by and images taken by Eden Hensley Silverstein for The Road to the Good Life.