Chocolate cheesecake hamantaschen jewhungry kosher blog

Friends. I’m going to be real honest with you. Every year there are unspoken latke and hamantaschen ‘wars’ between Jewish/Kosher food bloggers. And yes, I have fallen victim to these ‘wars’ ever since starting this blog. I’ve tried to create the next great latke or the next great hamantaschen. I’ve spent hours carefully crafting, photographing and editing posts int he name of this ‘competition’. It was kinda fun, but mostly exhausting. This year, however, I just wanted to make some cookies with my kiddo for no other reason then it’s fun and we like cookies. Plus, this year there are some AMAZING hamantaschen out there like this one and this one. Oh, and THIS one! The savory ones are really having a moment. It’s awesome. So, in the name of the kiddo’s latest obsession, pixie dust, we made these guys. They are tasty and they have TONS of sprinkles on them, but they aren’t the prettiest hamantaschen I’ve ever made.

 

chocolate cheesecake hamantaschen jewhungry kosher blog

Chocolate cheesecake hamantaschen jewhungry kosher blog

Chocolate cheesecake hamantaschen jewhungry kosher blog

I’m not quite sure what started her new obsession with pixie dust but it is deep and it is real. We even made pixie dust necklaces one Sunday, which was just a little bit of pink sand in a tiny glass bottle ona sparkle lanyard. It’s funny the obsessions that preschool-aged children have and how they come to be. Be it wanting to wear the same shirt every day or watch the same episode of Jake and the Neverland Pirates or wanting the same book every. single. night, there is a comfort in the familiar for this age. I work very hard on being mindful of just how much newness she’s encountered with on a daily basis being on 3 years old. It’s hard as a parent; you get so sick of all the redundancy. But they need the familiarity of it all. They’re little brains are taking in so much newness that the safety they find in the familiar is an easy and necessary comfort. And so, armed with every ounce of pink sprinkles and edible sprinkle hearts we had in the cupboard, we set out to make ‘pixie dust’ hamantaschen (which I later decided would need a name change for fear that if I advertised a recipe for ‘pixie dust hamantaschen’, I might get some seriously confused readers looking for a different kind of cookie, ifyouknowwhatimean). #saynotodrugs.

Cooking with my ladies.

Cooking with my ladies.

 

Our pixie dust necklace -- 1 tiny glass jar + pink sand + super glue + shimmery gold lanyard string.

Our pixie dust necklace — 1 tiny glass jar + pink sand + super glue + shimmery gold lanyard string.

My assistant being extremely intentional with every. single. sprinkle.

My assistant being extremely intentional with every. single. sprinkle.

 

Chocolate Cheesecake Hamantaschen (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

Ingredients

  • 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 ounces whipped cream cheese at room temperature
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1 1/3 cups plus 4 teaspoons flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Stawberry Jam
  • *Sprinkles Optional
  • For Chocolate Dipping:
  • 8 ounces dark chocolate chunks
  • 2 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 3 tablespoons coarse sea salt

Instructions

  1. Cream butter and cream cheese together until smooth.
  2. Add sugar and mix for one minute longer, then egg, vanilla extract, lemon zest and salt, mixing until combined.
  3. Finally, add the flour. The mixture should come together and be a tad sticky. If it feels too wet, add an additional tablespoon of flour.
  4. Form dough into a disc, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least an hour.
  5. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  6. To form the hamantaschen, roll out the dough on a well-floured surface until it is about 1/4-inch thick. Using a round cookie cutter or wide-rimmed glass, which is what I use, (cut the dough into circles. Spoon a teaspoon of you filling of choice in the center.
  7. Fold the dough in from three sides and firmly crimp the corners and give them a little twist to ensure they stay closed.
  8. Leave the filling mostly open in the center. Bake on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper and bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool on racks.
  9. For Chocolate Dipping:
  10. Melt chocolate and coconut oil in a double boiler or in the microwave. Stir until completely smooth and combined.
  11. Place in a small but deep bowl for dipping. Dip the cookies halfway into the melted chocolate. Place on a parchment lined tray. Sprinkle with a bit of sea salt. Place in the refrigerator to harden the chocolate.
https://jewhungrytheblog.com/chocolate-cheesecake-hamantaschen/

chocolate hamantaschen cookie jewhungry

I lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan during two separate time periods in my life.  The first time (2007) was to live a quieter, less expensive life during the months leading up to my year in Israel and the second time (2009 – 2011) was to attend Social Work School at The University of Michigan.  It was during my first night in Ann Arbor, in 2007, that I met Jackie.

I was biding my time, really. I had just moved in with my extremely patient and loving friend, Joel, who had gotten me a part-time gig as a program director at Michigan’s Hillel.  I had left everyone I knew and loved behind in Chicago and was excited to get to Israel already.  Ann Arbor was quaint and adorable (and freezing) but it had a purpose and that was to offer me a place to bide my time.  I had agreed to go with Joel to a Hillel graduate student bar night because I wanted to be a good friend and co-worker (Joel just also happened to be my new boss) but I was in no mood to go out.  I hadn’t been at the bar more than 15 minutes when Joel introduced me to Jackie.  It was love at first sight. Within minutes we had decided to move on to another bar where we could go dancing (until the wee hours of the night, as it turned out).  If it we decided we might be friends while at the bar, it was on the dance floor that we sealed the deal and decided (without saying anything) that we would be friends for ever. From that night on, we were inseparable.

All lined up and ready for baking.

All lined up and ready for baking.

My bestie and her best girl.

My bestie and her best girl.

Siona showing Violet a few things.

Siona showing Violet a few things.

It’s been seven years since we met that night in Ann Arbor.  Since that night, Jackie agreed to lead a Birthright trip just so she could visit me in Israel (where she counseled me into attending Social Work School, one of the best decisions of my life).  We’ve been there for each other through heart breaks and finally finding our basherts. We’ve been there for each other during stressful wedding planning and major career decisions. And now, most recently, we’ve been there for each other as we brought our daughters into this world.

This past Sunday was the first time our girls got to hang out together and it was one of the sweetest days of my life. Siona could not get enough of ‘baby’ and Violet just hung out and spent the day being lovely and peaceful.  When both girls went down for a nap, it was cookie time.  Since Jackie (in partnership with our third Musketeer, Annie) is one of the people who inspired me to start cooking, it only seemed appropriate that we spend some time cooking together.  I was inspired to do a hamantaschen based on my favorite Girl Scout cookie, the Thin Mint. My girl Amy over at What Jew Wanna Eat must have the same genius thinking because she just posted a similar cookie today. Mine is a little different as it focuses on that sweet, decadent chocolate and the mint is brought in via a subtle peppermint glaze. And, if peppermint isn’t your thing, just leave it out and you have yourself a delicious chocolate hamantaschen that will please all your friends and family.

Jewhungry kosher chocolate hamantashen cookie

Just your every day balabusta (Google it).

Jewhungry kosher chocolate hamantashen cookie

Double Chocolate Mint Hamantaschen

Ingredients

  • Makes 2 dozen (give or take a couple)
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup oil
  • 1 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 3 teaspoons baking powder
  • 6 cups flour
  • 1/4 cup cocoa powder
  • 1 tablespoon strong coffee
  • 1/4 - 1/2 cup large chocolate chips (semi sweet or milk will work. I used milk chocolate)
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 tsp peppermint oil
  • 3 tablespoons milk

Instructions

  1. Preheat Oven: 350 degrees
  2. In a medium mixing bowl, mix together eggs, oil, sugar, and vanilla.
  3. Next, add baking powder and flour to the bowl and mix well to combine. Finally, add the cocoa and strong coffee and give it one more good stir (dough should be thick, almost like bread dough).
  4. Knead the dough until smooth.
  5. Flour a rolling pin and roll out to roughly 1/8 inch thin on a floured board.
  6. Using a round cookie cutter or a drinking glass with a wide opening, cut out circles (use the scraps to make cookies as well, just keep forming into a large ball and rolling out thin and repeat process until dough is done).
  7. Drop a handful of chocolate chips (should be roughly 10 chips or more) into the center of each circle.
  8. Have a glass or small bowl of a little bit of cold water near by so that you can dip your fingers in to help fold the dough into three sides over the filling forming a triangle (water acts as a glue to the dough and will help edges stick).
  9. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes on a lined cookie sheet.
  10. Once fully cooked, let cool for at least 5 - 10 minutes. While cooling, place the powdered sugar, peppermint oil and milk into a small bowl and stir until milky consistency.
https://jewhungrytheblog.com/double-chocolate-mint-hamantaschen/

Jewhungry kosher chocolate hamantashen cookie

Our family

Our family

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