Hamantashen-what are they???? In case you aren’t familiar with these gems of a cookie, hamantashen is a traditional cut out cookie with a twist. You add your favorite filling to the center and turn them into triangles. Why? Well, let me tell you!
Hamantashen come from the term Haman, a biblical character in Persia. Haman was a bad man and a central character of the Jewish story of Purim. Haman, an advisor to the king, wanted to do away with the Jews of Persia, and long story short, his plan was foiled. The king saved the Jews from persecution. Every year at this time, Jews celebrate this through a carnival style party. They dress us in crazy costumes, give gifts to the needy, and indulge in a sweet 3 pointed cookie, the hamantashen, named after the shape of Haman’s 3 pointed hat (think Napoleon).
This isn’t a typical recipe of mine. It does use margarine and sugar. However, a standard recipe would use 2 eggs for the amount of flour I used. I swapped this out for tofu. Tofu is one of the swaps for egg, and I thought it would help create a more moist, flexible texture to the dough. When I set off to convert my traditional recipe into a gluten free & plant-based recipe, I didn’t want to lose the whole grain goodness of whole wheat flour. To replace whole wheat flour (and by the way-you can use traditional flours in this recipe), I used a blend of sorghum and teff flour. Gluten is a good protein, allowing for elasticity, and when you omit it, you need to do something to replace the structural protein. Teff is a very small grain-packed with high amounts of protein. Since teff and sorghum are both high in protein, they help in the binding process. I did add some xantham gum in this year’s recipe. If you want to avoid using it, you can sub 1 tbsp of psyllium husk for the xantham gum. Xantham adds elasticity and makes the dough easier to roll out. The psyllium adds fiber and structure, which also can help with the rolling out of the dough. If you find you’re having trouble rolling the dough using psyllium, then just roll into balls and hand press into circles. The dough will taste great no matter what. It’d also be great on its own without the filling as a drop/press cookie too.
Flours: For this recipe I used a whole grain gluten free flour blend and an all-purpose flour-King Arthur. You can use a different gluten free all purpose flour mixture, just check to see if it has added xantham gum. If it does, you won’t need to add additional. It’s best to weigh out your flours, as each weighs a different amount per cup. I use 130 g as my standard cup.
Here’s a recipe for an All Purpose Gluten Free Flour Blend, if you wish to make your own (feel free to double or triple to have on hand, you will have left overs):
140 grams of brown rice flour (I like Bob’s Red Mill)
140 grams tapioca starch (can sub potato or arrowroot)
140 grams of millet or sorghum flour (we used millet in this recipe)-we use Bob’s Red Mill
Makes About 72 smaller cookies, or 55 larger ones
Ingredients:
- 1 1/3 cup plant-based margarine (10 tbsp)-like Earth Balance
- 1 cup of sugar (could sub granular sugar of choice)
- 1/2 cup mashed silken tofu
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 280 grams of whole grain gluten free flour blend (130 g of sorghum, 130g of teff)-can use just sorghum if desired or can use oat flour as well (or 2 cups of whole wheat flour for non-gluten free peeps)
- 280 grams of all purpose gluten free flour blend-see above or use your own* (or 2 cups of white flour)
- 3/4 tsp of xantham gum or 1 tbsp psyllium husk* (if making with traditional flours, omit this)
- Fillings of choice: prune/plum (traditional), jellies, date paste (click here to learn how to make it), or melted chocolate
*If you do use a pre-mix that contains xantham, don’t add the psyllium husk in the recipe. Psyllium acts similarly as xantham and guar gums in its absorbency property. It can be found easily in grocery stores (don’t be scared by it’s label as “colon cleanser”, it helps absorb liquid by increasing fiber). You could sub out the whole grain mixture if you don’t have all of the flours and sub a whole grain flour such as sorghum, teff, or almond. Just be sure to weigh them, as each measures out different cup amounts by weight.
Instructions:
- Weigh out flours
- Cream sugar and margarine. Add tofu
- Mix flours in a bowl, add dry ingredients 1/2 cup at a time, as it incorporates, add in orange juice
- Cover and chill for at least 3 hours or overnight
- Flour a cutting board and roll out dough. It’s easiest if you do this between 2 sheets of saran wrap, one below and one on top of the dough. If dough is sticky, add additional flour. Cut out using a floured glass and place circles on greased or lined cookie sheets.*If using gluten free flours without xantham gum: I found it more difficult to work with. I rolled a handful of dough into additional GF All Purpose Flour to cut down on the stickiness. I made balls of dough instead (about 1 tbsp of dough) and gently pressed them into circles the size of the glass diameter.
- Add fillings of choice: prune/plum (traditional), jellies, date paste, or melted chocolate
Homemade Date Paste
Super Cute Helper
- Pinch corners into triangle shape, so that filling still shows in center
Pre-baked Gluten Free Chocolate Filled Hamantashen
- Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Let cool and enjoy!
- 1⅓ cup of margarine (10 tbsp)-like Earth Balance
- 1 cup of sugar (could sub granular sugar of choice)
- ½ cup mashed silken tofu
- ½ cup orange juice
- 280 grams of whole grain gluten free flour blend (130 g of sorghum, 130g of teff)-can use just sorghum if desired or can use oat flour as well (or 2 cups of whole wheat flour for non-gluten free peeps)
- 280 grams of all purpose gluten free flour blend-see above or use your own* (or 2 cups of white flour)
- ¾ tsp of xantham gum or 1 tbsp psyllium husk* (if making with traditional flours, omit this)
- Fillings of choice: prune/plum (traditional), jellies,
- date paste
- (click
- here
- to learn how to make it), or melted chocolate
- *If you do use a pre-mix that contains xantham, don't add the psyllium husk in the recipe. Psyllium acts similarly as xantham and guar gums in its absorbency property. It can be found easily in grocery stores (don't be scared by it's label as "colon cleanser", it helps absorb liquid by increasing fiber). You could sub out the whole grain mixture if you don't have all of the flours and sub a whole grain flour such as sorghum, teff, or almond. Just be sure to weigh them, as each measures out different cup amounts by weight.
- Weigh out flours
- Cream sugar and margarine. Add tofu
- Mix flours in a bowl, add dry ingredients ½ cup at a time, as it incorporates, add in orange juice
- Cover and chill for at least 3 hours or overnight
- Flour a cutting board and roll out dough. It's easiest if you do this between 2 sheets of saran wrap, one below and one on top of the dough. If dough is sticky, add additional flour. Cut out using a floured glass and place circles on greased or lined cookie sheets.*If using gluten free flours without xantham gum: I found it more difficult to work with. I rolled a handful of dough into additional GF All Purpose Flour to cut down on the stickiness. I made balls of dough instead (about 1 tbsp of dough) and gently pressed them into circles the size of the glass diameter.
- Add fillings of choice: prune/plum (traditional), jellies,
- date paste
- , or melted chocolate
- Homemade Date Paste
- Super Cute Helper
- Pinch corners into triangle shape, so that filling still shows in center
- Pre-baked Gluten Free Chocolate Filled Hamantashen
- Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes until golden brown. Let cool and enjoy!
