Caramelized Onion and Poppy Seed Hamantaschen

By Joan Nathan

Published March 12, 2019

  • Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
1 hour 15 minutes
Rating
4(237)
Comments
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Traditionally filled with apricot, prune or poppy seed jam, triangular hamantaschen cookies are a prized treat for the Jewish holiday of Purim. This dessert serves as a reminder of the Jewish people’s deliverance from Haman, who sought to exterminate Persia’s Jews in the fifth century B.C. This recipe is fully savory, tucking crumbled feta under thyme-scented caramelized onions, but you could just as easily fill the buttery dough with sweet jam to please traditionalists. When forming hamantaschen pastries, make sure to leave an opening wide enough for the filling to be visible but small enough to retain moisture.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 36 hamantaschen

  • 2 cups/255 grams unbleached all-purpose flour

  • 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

  • 1 teaspoon baking powder

  • Kosher salt

  • 10 tablespoons/140 grams cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes

  • 1 ½ teaspoons balsamic vinegar

  • 1 large egg, yolk and white separated

  • Ice water, as needed

  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

  • 1 large onion, halved and very thinly sliced

  • 2 fresh thyme sprigs

  • 1 fresh or dried bay leaf

  • 1 teaspoon honey

  • Freshly ground black pepper

  • 1 tablespoon poppy seeds

  • 3 ounces good-quality feta or goat cheese, crumbled (about ½ cup)

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving

7 grams carbs; 15 milligrams cholesterol; 72 calories; 1 gram monosaturated fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 4 grams fat; 50 milligrams sodium; 2 grams protein; 1 gram sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and 1 teaspoon salt in the bowl of a food processor. Add 9 tablespoons butter and pulse until coarse crumbs form. Add ½ teaspoon balsamic vinegar and the egg yolk and pulse, adding 2 to 3 tablespoons or so of ice water if needed to form a soft dough. Wrap the dough in waxed paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate, about 30 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Meanwhile, heat the oil and the remaining 1 tablespoon butter in a medium nonstick pan over medium-low. Add the onion, thyme, bay leaf and honey, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until caramelized, about 20 minutes. Discard the thyme sprigs and bay leaf. Stir in the poppy seeds and the remaining 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar and season to taste. Let cool.

  3. Step 3

    Remove the dough from the fridge, heat the oven to 375 degrees and cover 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

  4. Step 4

    Roll out the dough onto a floured surface until ⅛ inch thick. Using a 2 ½-inch round mold or glass, cut the dough into rounds. Top each round with a hefty pinch of cheese in the center, then a heaping teaspoon of the cooled onion mixture. Working with one round at a time, dip a pastry brush or your finger into the egg white and moisten the edges of the excess dough surrounding the filling. Fold up 3 sides of the round to form a triangle, partly covering the filling with the dough, and pinch the dough firmly at all 3 tips of the triangle. Transfer to the parchment-lined baking sheets and repeat to make about 36 hamantaschen.

  5. Step 5

    Bake until golden, rotating midway through baking, 15 to 20 minutes, then serve warm.

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FAQS

  1. There are two main ways to fold hamantaschen that discourage their tendency to open up as they bake. One is to simply fold up the sides of the dough round  to form a triangle around the filling, pinching the corners to seal. Another is to fold the sides of the dough so they overlap at the corners, tucking one end of one side under the corner of the next as needed to form a pocket.

Ratings

4 out of 5
237 user ratings
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Comments

Hannah

Ate a few. Still alive.

Patty

Onion filling is great! No fresh thyme so made it with a little dried chopped thyme. I made half the hamantaschen with jam filling; also delicious. Problem dough recipe, though: Either too much flour or needing a whole lot more water. Even with double the water the dough was still crumbly. If making the full recipe, pull only half of the dough out of the fridge at a time because if it's too warm when the pastry goes into the oven, it looses its triangle shape.

Debbie

hi Judith- I can assume that the dough that was chilled 1 hour was just a bit too cold and expanded more as a reaction to the more extreme temp. change. The moisture that was captured in the dough had trouble escaping as it baked so it produced steam and puffed, causing the triangles to open. I'm sure your next batch will be perfect!

Dorianne

I made these with black sesame seeds because I couldn't find poppy seeds at my local market. They came out delicious and were a big hit at my women's book group!

Lindsay

I'd like to prep the dough and filling the night before, then assemble and bake in the morning for a brunch. will that work? sounds like this dough is quite finicky based on temperature. thanks for any advice!

Archdruid

Cheated: Used Just-Rol pre-rolled thin pizza dough from the dairy case. Perfect. and Delice de Bourgogne instead of feta.

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